OCT    3C  1968 


.  V . 


Westminster  Commentaries 
Edited  by  Walter  Lock  D.D. 

IRELAND   PROFESSOR  OF  THE    EXEORBIS 
OF   HOLY  SCRIPTURE 


THE  EPISTLE 

TO 

THE    HEBREWS 


THE  EPISTLE  (     OCT  19 

TO  ^<2i2£[nAr 

THE    HEBREWS 


WITH   INTRODUCTION   AND   NOTES 


BY 

E.   C.  WICKHAM  D.D. 

DEAN  OF  LINCOLN 
HON.   FELLOW  OF  NEW  COLLECiE,  OXFORD 


NEW  YORK 

EDWIN   S.   GORHAM 

LONDON:  METHUEN  &  CO.,   LTD. 


PREFATORY  NOTE  BY  THE  GENERAL  EDITOR 

nnHE  primary  object  of  these  Commentaries  is  to  be 
exegetical,  to  interpret  the  meaning  of  each  book  of 
the  Bible  in  the  light  of  modern  knowledge  to  English 
readers.  The  Editors  will  not  deal,  except  subordinately, 
with  questions  of  textual  criticism  or  philology  ;  but  taking 
the  English  text  in  the  Revised  Version  as  their  basis,  they 
will  aim  at  combining  a  hearty  acceptance  of  critical  principles 
with  loyalty  to  the  Catholic  Faith. 

The  series  will  be  less  elementary  than  the  Cambridge 
Bible  for  Schools,  less  critical  than  the  International  Critical 
Commentary,  less  didactic  than  the  Expositor's  Bible  ;  and  it 
is  hoped  that  it  may  be  of  use  both  to  theological  students 
and  to  the  clergy,  as  well  as  to  the  growing  number  of 
educated  laymen  and  laywomen  who  wish  to  read  the  Bible 
intelligently  and  reverently. 

Each  commentary  will  therefore  have 

(i)  An  Introduction  stating  the  bearing  of  modern 
criticism  and  research  upon  the  historical  character  of  the 
book,  and  drawing  out  the  contribution  which  the  book,  as  a 
whole,  makes  to  the  body  of  religious  truth. 

(ii)  A  careful  paraphrase  of  the  text  with  notes  on  the 
more  difficult  passages  and,  if  need  be,  excursuses  on  any 

a3 


vi  PREFATORY  NOTE 

points  of  special  importance  either  for  doctrine,  or  ecclesi- 
astical organization,  or  spiritual  life. 

But  the  books  of  the  Bible  are  so  varied  in  character  that 
considerable  latitude  is  needed,  as  to  the  proportion  which  the 
various  parts  should  hold  to  each  other.  The  General  Editor 
will  therefore  only  endeavour  to  secure  a  general  uniformity 
in  scope  and  character :  but  the  exact  method  adopted  in 
each  case  and  the  final  responsibility  for  the  statements  made 
will  rest  with  the  individual  contributors. 

By  permission  of  the  Delegates  of  the  Oxford  University 
Press  and  of  the  Syndics  of  the  Cambridge  University  Press 
the  Text  used  in  this  Series  of  Commentaries  is  the  Revised 
Version  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

WALTER  LOCK 


PREFACE 

rpHE  general  purpose  of  this  addition  to  the  numerous 
-^  Commentaries  on  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  is  stated 
by  the  General  Editor.  But  the  particular  Editor  may  be 
allowed  to  say  one  word  as  to  his  own  view  of  what  the 
purpose  included. 

His  main  desire  in  these  pages  has  been  to  make  the 
general  argument  of  the  Epistle  clear  and  to  exhibit  it  as  a 
whole.  The  Epistle  seems  to  him  to  be  one  that  demands 
this  more  than  other  Epistles  of  the  New  Testament.  Though 
in  the  form  of  a  letter,  and  with  the  personal  purpose  of  a 
letter,  it  is  also  a  complete  and  artistic  composition.  There 
are  no  digressions  properly  so  called.  Even  in  what  reads 
like  a  postscript  the  thoughts  are  put  out  in  this  form  not  by 
accident,  but  because  the  writer  felt  that  in  that  way  and  at 
that  moment  they  would  most  effectively  answer  his  design. 

It  is  in  view  of  this  character  of  the  Epistle  that  the 
Editor  has  prefixed  to  the  Commentary,  besides  the  Summary 
of  Contents,  a  full  Paraphrase  of  the  Epistle.  A  paraphrase 
is  not  a  loose  translation.  It  deliberately  forfeits  the  power 
of  reproducing  in  any  way  the  literary  form  ;  but  it  aims 
at  preserving,  and  in  some  degree  making  clearer  than  a 
translation  can  make  it,  the  complete  articulation  of  the 
thought.  It  is  meant  to  be  read  with  the  Commentary,  and 
as  a  chief  part  of  it. 

The  Epistle  has  been  to  the  Editor  a  special  object  of 
interest  and  study  for  many  years,  and  if  he  has  referred  by 


yiii  PREFACE 

name  to  only  a  few  and  those  the  more  recent  of  English 
commentators,  this  does  not  mean  that  he  has  not  endeavoured 
to  read  at  some  time  or  other  whatever  seemed  likely  to 
throw  light  upon  it.  Three  editions  by  English  scholars  he 
has  frequently  mentioned,  as  likely  to  be  at  hand  to  his 
readers  and  as  raising  questions  which  should  be  answered 
or  as  enabling  him  by  such  reference  to  express  more  clearly 
the  view  which  he  desired  to  set  before  them^.  It  would  be 
ungrateful  if  he  did  not  name  here,  as  he  has  not  done 
otherwise,  a  book  to  which  any  English  student  of  the 
Epistle  must  owe  very  much,  Prof  A.  B.  Bruce's  "Epistle 
to  Hebrews :  the  first  Apology  for  Christianity "  (T.  and 
T.  Clark,  1899).  The  only  other  word  that  the  Editor  would 
say  is  one  of  hearty  thanks  to  Prof  Lock  for  very  much 
valuable  advice  and  assistance. 

1  These  are 

(i)  The  great  and  exhaustive  commentary  of  Bp  Westcott  (Macmillan 
&  Co.). 

(ii)  The  scholarly  edition  of  Dean  Vaughan  (Macmillan  &  Co.), 
invaluable  both  for  the  method  and  for  the  results  of  its  careful  study  of 
the  Writer's  words  and  phrases. 

(iii)  The  slighter  but  fresh  and  ingenious  edition  of  the  Rev.  F. 
Kendall  (Macmillan  &  Co.). 

E.   C.  WICKHAM 


CONTENTS 

PAGB 

Introduction  : 

I xi 

II.  The  wi-iter xi 

III.  Circumstances  and  purpose  of  the  Epistle     ...  xv 

IV.  The  method  of  the  Epistle xx 

V.  General  summary  of  the  contents xxii 

Paraphrase  op  the  Epistle xxix 

Text  and  Commentary 1 

Appendix  I.    The  Gospel  tradition  in  the  Epistle        .        .        .  135 

Appendix  II.    The  two  Sacraments  in  the  Epistle        .        .        .  137 

Appendix  III.    Use  of  the  Epistle  in  the  Prayer-Book        .        .  138 

Index 141 


"The  old  things  are  passed  away:  behold  they  are  become  new." 

2  Cor.  v.  17  KV. 

"Jesus  Christ  is  the  same  yesterday  and  to-day,  yea  and  for  ever." 

Heb.  xiii.  8  R.V. 


INTRODUCTION 


I 


In  one  point  of  the  first  importance  few  writings  of  the  New 
Testament  present  more  satisfactory  evidence  than  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews.  It  was  known  and  held  in  esteem  before  the  end  of  the 
first  century.  Clement  of  Eome  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Corinthian 
Church,  which  by  general  consent  is  dated  between  95  and  97  a.d., 
transcribes  passages  from  it,  treats  it  (though,  as  his  way  is  with 
Scripture,  without  naming  it)  as  a  document  of  authority,  echoes 
its  ideas  and  its  phraseology.  When  we  pass  to  the  further  questions 
which  are  naturally  asked — who  wrote  the  Epistle,  and  to  whom, 
and  from  whence,  and  more  precisely  at  what  time  in  the  first 
century — the  case  is  changed.  No  answers  can  be  given  that  are 
not  conditional  and  conjectural.  Unless  its  concluding  paragraph 
is  interpolated  (which  is  hardly  suggested)  there  can  have  been  no 
original  concealment  or  mystification.  The  writer  speaks  unmis- 
takeably  in  tones  of  affection  and  concern,  and  as  though  he  had 
claims  on  the  attention  of  those  whom  he  addresses.  There  are 
references,  personal,  local,  and  temporal,  which  he  assumes  will  be 
understood :  but  the  clue  to  their  understanding  seems  to  have  been 
early  lost  and  cannot  be  recovered. 

11.     The  writer. 

It  may  be  convenient  to  deal  first  with  the  question  of  the 
writer  though  it  is  not  the  most  important.  It  was  the  question  on 
which  in  the  early  centuries  discussion  was  concentrated  ;  for  on  it 
the  further  question  of  the  canonicity  of  the  Epistle  was  held  to 
depend. 

There  were  in  the  third  century  two  positive  traditions  with 
respect  to  the  authorship  of  the  Epistle. 


xii  INTRODUCTION 

1.  The  first  Latin  Father  who  names  it  (TertuUian,  in  the 
De  Pudidtia,  ch.  xx.,  a.d.  220-230?)  attributes  it  without  question 
(and  therefore  apparently  from  a  tradition  generally  current  in 
N.  Africa)  to  Barnabas.  Of  all  the  suggestions  made  this  is  perhaps 
still  the  most  tempting.  It  does  not  indeed  throw  any  fresh  light 
on  the  Epistle,  but  it  suits  and  completes  his  character  so  well  that 
we  like  to  believe  it — the  "Levite  of  the  country  of  Cyprus,"  a 
Hellenist  (that  is)  by  birthplace,  but  Hebrew  by  race,  with  hereditary 
interest  in  the  Jewish  sacrificial  system — the  close  companion  of 
St  Paul,  yet  with  standing  and  an  outlook  of  his  own — the  "  son  of 
consolation  (or,  exhortation)" — the  mediator  and  peacemaker 
between  old  and  new\ 

2.  The  second  tradition,  which  becomes  known  to  us  as  early 
as  the  first,  connects  the  Epistle  with  St  Paul.  This  was  the  view 
which  obtained  the  more  general  support,  and  held  possession  in  the 
Church  until  the  revival  of  learning;  but  its  foundations  are 
insecure.  It  can  hardly  have  been  known  to  Clement  of  Rome, 
who,  as  has  been  said,  at  the  end  of  the  first  century  possessed  and 
used  the  Epistle;  for  the  Church  of  Rome,  though  so  closely 
connected  with  St  Paul,  was  the  particular  Church  which,  on  account 
of  disbelief  in  the  Pauline  authorship,  refused  for  three  centuries  to 
receive  the  Epistle  as  canonical.  The  tradition  belonged  to  the 
Church  at  Alexandria ;  but  the  great  Alexandrine  scholars,  Clement 
and  Origen,  who  are  our  first  authorities  for  its  currency,  shew  that 
they  felt  serious  difficulty  in  the  way  of  whole-hearted  acceptance 
of  it.  Clement^,  according  to  Eusebius,  spoke  of  the  Epistle  as  having 
been  written  by  St  Paul  in  Aramaic  and  translated  by  St  Luke  into 
Greek,  which  accounts  (he  says)  for  the  resemblance  of  the  style 
to  that  of  the  Acts.  He  adds  that  St  Paul  did  not  give  his  own 
name  lest  it  should  raise  prejudice  against  the  Epistle.  Neither 
statement  can  be  correct.  Whatever  else  is  true  of  the  Epistle,  we 
can  confidently  say  that  it  is  an  original  Greek  composition,  not  a 
translation ;  and  (as  has  been  said)  a  purposed  concealment  of  name 
is  inconceivable  in  view  of  ch.  xiii.  22-25.  Origen^  Clement's 
pupil,  summed  up  the  state  of  the  question  in  words  to  which 

1  It  should  be  said  that  if  this  identificatioa  is  right,  it  follows  that  the 
composition  which  goes  under  the  name  of  the  "Epistle  of  Barnabas"  belongs 
(as  is  probable  on  other  grounds)  to  another  Barnabas  or  is  falsely  titled.  The 
views  taken  of  the  Mosaic  Law  in  the  two  Epistles  are  so  entirely  at  variance 
that  the  two  Epistles  cannot  proceed  from  the  same  person. 

2  Euseb.  H.  E.  vi.  14.  '  Euseb.  H.  E.  vi.  25. 


INTRODUCTION  xiii 

later  study  has  hardly  enabled  us  substantially  to  add:  "The 
diction  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  has  not  the  character  which 
St  Paul  describes  when  he  calls  himself  [that  is,  in  2  Cor.  xi.  6] 
'rude  [literally  an  amateur  or  untrained  person]  in  speech.'  Any 
one  who  has  the  least  capacity  for  distinguishing  style  would 
pronounce  it  to  be  more  thoroughly  Greek:  on  the  other  hand 
the  thoughts  of  the  Epistle  are  marvellous,  not  second  to  those 
of  any  writing  confessedly  Apostolic  [or,  of  the  Apostle,  i.e.  St  Paul], 
as  again  any  one  familiar  with  the  writings  of  the  Apostles  [or, 
Apostle]  would  allow,... If  I  were  setting  forth  my  own  judgement 
I  should  say  that  the  thoughts  are  the  Apostle's  [i.e.  St  Paul's]  but 
the  diction  and  composition  are  due  to  some  one  who  had  taken 
notes  of  the  master's  teaching.  If  then  any  Church  holds  this 
Epistle  as  Paul's,  it  may  be  left  happily  in  its  belief :  for  it  was  not 
at  random  that  ancient  tradition  attributed  it  to  him :  but  who  it 
was  who  wrote  it  [i.e.  who  supplied  the  "diction  and  composition" 
spoken  of  above]  God  knows.  The  stories  that  have  come  to  us 
vary.  Some  say  that  Clement,  Bishop  of  Rome,  wrote  it,  some 
Luke,  who  wrote  the  Gospel  and  the  Acts." 

Origen  makes  it  clear  that  even  in  Alexandria,  where  the  theory 
of  Pauline  authorship  seems  to  have  started,  the  best  scholarship  of 
the  first  half  of  the  third  century  looked  upon  the  theory  as  a 
guess,  one  among  several,  not  without  some  basis  in  fact,  but  as  in 
its  full  and  literal  sense  an  impossible  one.  As  we  should  say  of  a 
picture,  he  allows  that  it  may  be  "of  the  school  of  Paul,"  from  the 
pen  of  one  united  with  him  in  purpose,  familiar  with  his  thoughts 
and  turns  of  expression :  but  he  finds  the  style  utterly  different,  and 
different  in  a  respect  in  which,  whatever  we  think  of  our  own 
judgement,  his  would  seem  to  be  without  appeal.  It  is,  he  says, 
"more  Greek." 

The  more  the  Epistle  has  been  studied  the  more  impossible  it 
has  been  felt  to  attribute  it  to  St  Paul.  The  style  i&  not  his.  The 
mode  of  composition  is  not  his.  The  position  assumed  by  the 
writer  is  not  his.  When  every  allowance  is  made  for  difference  of 
occasion  and  purpose,  it  does  not  seem  possible  that  St  Paul,  who 
claims  so  constantly  (unless  indeed  1  Cor.  xv.  3  be  an  exception, 
but  see  below,  note  on  ch.  ii.  3,  4)  to  have  received  the  Gospel  not 
from  human  teaching,  but  "through  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ" 
(Gal.  i.  12),  could  put  himself,  as  the  writer  of  this  Epistle  does 
(ii.  3,  4),  by  the  side  of  those  to  whom  he  writes,  as  having  learnt 

H.  h 


xiv  INTRODUCTION 

it,  as  they  had  done,  from  those  who  themselves  had  heard  the 
Lord,  and  to  whom  it  had  been  confirmed  by  miracle.  The  writer 
comes  at  times  (as  in  ch.  x.  37,  38)  apparently  on  common  ground 
with  St  Paul.  There  are  what  sound  like  echoes  of  familiar  phrases 
and  quotations,  but  when  they  are  examined  (see  the  additional 
note  on  x,  37)  it  seems  that  both  phrases  and  quotations,  if  they  be 
due  to  verbal  memory,  have  yet  really  a  different  meaning  and 
purpose  in  the  two  writers:  it  is  not  quite  the  same  "righteousness" 
nor  the  same  "faith"  that  they  speak  of. 

3.  When  we  go  beyond  the  names  of  Barnabas  and  Paul  we 
are  embarking  plainly  on  mere  conjecture,  even  if  the  scholars  of 
Alexandria  have  preceded  us.  They  mentioned  two  names  :  Clement 
OF  Rome  and  St  Luke.  The  first  suggestion  was  based,  no  doubt, 
on  the  fact  that  ideas,  phrases,  and  even  passages  of  this  Epistle 
appear  in  the  Epistle  which  bears  Clement's  own  name  :  but  no  one 
can  read  them  there  without  seeing  that  they  are  borrowed  from  a 
document  to  which  he  attached  authority,  not  originally  due  to 
himself.  Those  who  made  the  second  conjecture  found  much  in 
the  style  and  temper  of  the  Epistle  to  explain  and  commend  it  to 
them  :  but  it  fails  in  a  critical  point.  We  cannot  believe  that  the 
writer  was  a  Gentile,  and  we  can  hardly  doubt  that  St  Luke  was 
one. 

Other  names  have  been  suggested  since  the  question  was  raised 
again  after  the  Reformation.  Luther  made  the  guess,  happy  in 
itself,  that  the  writer  was  Apollos— the  "Jew,  Alexandrian  by  race, 
eloquent  (or,  learned)  and  mighty  in  the  Scriptures" — the  friend 
and  scholar  of  St  Paul,  yet  evidently  with  a  history  of  his  own,  who 
would  be  acquainted  with  Timothy,  "  who  helped  them  much  which 
had  believed  through  grace...  she  wing  by  the  Scriptures  that  Jesus 
was  Christ"  (Acts  xviii.  24  and  28).  Every  characteristic  by  itself 
suits  admirably.  But  in  default  of  proof  it  remains  a  possible 
conjecture,  and  no  more ;  it  carries  us  no  further  than  the  undeniable 
proposition  that  Apollos  as  he  is  described  to  us  must  have  been 
capable  of  writing  such  a  letter:  it  throws  no  light  on  the  occasion 
or  recipients  of  the  Epistle :  and  no  reason  is  suggested  why  the 
name  should  not  have  occurred  to  those  who  handled  the  question 
in  the  third  century.  No  more  can  be  said,  perhaps  no  less,  of 
other  suggestions  which  have  been  made,  such  as  Silas,  Aquila, 
Priscilla. 

One  name  which  has  been  suggested  lately,  that  of  Philip  the 


INTRODUCTION  xv 

Deacon,  stands  on  different  grounds,  in  that  it  belongs  to  a  serious 
attempt  to  conceive  the  circumstances  of  the  Epistle  as  a  whole. 
Sir  W.  Ramsay  (following  up  a  suggestion  of  the  Rev.  W.  M.  Lewis, 
and  supported  in  turn  in  an  interesting  paper  in  the  Interpreter  of 
April  1909  by  Canon  E.  L.  Hicks)  places  the  Epistle  during  the 
detention  of  St  Paul  at  Caesarea.  He  thinks  that  Philip  (who 
was  living  at  the  time  at  Caesarea,  Acts  xxi.  8)  wrote,  after  inter- 
course with  St  Paul  and  as  the  mouthpiece  of  the  Caesarean  Church, 
to  the  Church  of  Jerusalem  with  the  view  of  helping  to  the  ultimate 
reconcilement  of  the  Pauline  and  Judaic  parties  in  it.  The  situation 
is  realized  in  detail  and  the  possibility  established:  but  a  good 
many  assumptions  are  necessary ;  and  it  may  be  doubted  whether 
the  severity  of  tone  in  parts  of  the  Epistle  and  the  sense  of 
imminent  catastrophe  are  sufficiently  explained. 

HI.     Circumstances  and  purpose  of  the  Epistle. 

Questions  of  the  date  and  of  the  destination  of  the  Epistle 
cannot  be  treated  apart  from  consideration  of  the  internal  evidence 
which  it  affords  of  its  purpose  and  of  the  situation  which  it 
presupposes. 

1.  The  title  "to  Hebrews,"  though  we  cannot  suppose  it  to 
have  been  part  of  the  original  text,  is  of  early  origin  and  describes 
what  was  taken  to  be  the  character  of  those  to  whom  the  Epistle 
was  addressed.  They  were  "Hebrews,"  that  is,  not  only  of  Hebrew 
blood,  but  of  those  who  made  the  most  of  their  nationality.  It  is 
not  a  local  but  a  descriptive  name.  In  the  three  places  in  which 
it  occurs  in  the  New  Testament  (Acts  vi.  1,  2  Cor.  xi.  22,  Phil.  iii.  5) 
it  is  on  the  one  side  distinguished  from  the  race  name  "Israelite," 
and  on  the  other  contrasted  with  "Hellenist"  ("Grecian  Jew"  R.V., 
"Grecian"  A.V.),  i.e.  a  Jew  who  in  language  and  mode  of  life  was 
assimilated  to  the  Greek  world  round  him.  That  it  was  difficult  to 
draw  a  line  precisely  between  the  two  classes  is  illustrated  by  the 
fact  that  the  writer  of  this  Epistle  takes  it  for  granted  that  these 
"Hebrews"  read  the  Greek  version  of  the  Scriptures.  All  his 
quotations  are  taken  from  it  and  he  builds  arguments  upon  its 
words  even  where  they  differ  from  the  Hebrew  text.  But  the 
Epistle  is  evidently  addressed  throughout  to  Jewish  Christians. 
The  whole  argument  both  in  what  it  contains  and  in  what  it 
omits  bears  witness  to  its  purpose.     The  great  surrounding  Gentile 

62 


xvi  INTRODUCTION 

world  is  out  of  sight;  and  with  it  all  the  questions  which  arose 
from  the  union  in  one  Church  of  Jews  and  Gentiles.  It  is  significant 
that  we  never  hear  of  circumcision.  There  is  no  question  raised 
of  the  obligation  of  the  Law.  On  the  other  hand  the  argument  is 
based  almost  wholly  on  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures.  The 
writer's  aim  is  to  shew  that  everything  in  the  Christian  scheme 
that  would  cause  difficulty  to  Jewish  feeling  was  indeed  part  of  the 
picture  given  by  Psalmists  and  Prophets.  The  unique  dignity  of 
the  Messiah  and  yet  His  association  with  sufiering  and  death  :  the 
supersession  of  the  Levitical  priesthood  by  one  of  a  higher  order : 
the  substitution  of  a  spiritual  for  a  material  sanctuary  and  offering: 
the  new  and  more  effectual  Covenant — are  all  put  into  Old  Testament 
language,  and  traced  to  the  authority  of  David,  Moses,  and 
Jeremiah.  There  is  a  turn  of  phrase  in  ii.  16  which  marks  a 
reference  to  Jewish  feeling  so  habitual  to  the  waiter  as  to  be 
scarcely  conscious.  He  has  been  insisting  on  the  comfort  brought 
by  the  truth  of  the  Incarnation  to  men  as  men,  and  naturally  the 
sentence  would  have  run  "It  was  not  angels  that  He  came  to  help, 
but  men,"  but  for  "men"  he  substitutes,  to  the  apparent  damaging 
of  the  argument,  "the  seed  of  Abraham,"  as  though  the  Incarnation 
were  to  be  represented  as  a  crowning  instance  of  the  "stretched  out 
Arm"  which  had  so  often  intervened  to  succour  the  chosen  people. 

2.  One  more  point  is  clear.  The  Epistle  is  addressed  to  a 
definite  set  of  persons.  It  is  not,  as  has  been  sometimes  suggested, 
a  general  or  circular  letter  for  the  "Hebrew"  members  of  the  Church 
at  large  or  of  the  Churches  scattered  over  a  wide  area.  The 
community  in  view  has  a  history  of  its  own,  has  personal  lies 
to  the  writer,  common  interests  with  him,  he  is  hoping  to  visit  it. 
It  may  be  a  small  community  or  party  within  a  community,  and  the 
letter,  though  opening  up  the  largest  questions,  may  have  arisen 
from  some  incident  which  in  itself  would  not  have  attracted  general 
attention.  In  respect  of  the  greatest  works  of  literature  what  the 
Greek  observer  said  of  wars  holds  true,  that  though  the  causes 
be  great  the  occasion  may  be  small.  It  is  a  community  not 
at  one  with  itself.  We  notice  that  the  "leaders"  (xiii.  17)  are 
distinguished  from  the  persons  for  whom  the  letter  is  intended. 
Obedience  to  them  is  enjoined.  It  is  assumed  that  in  the  issues 
raised  they  are  on  the  writer's  side. 

3.  The  Church  then,  or  rather  perhaps  the  section  of  a  Church, 
which  is  addressed,  may  be  safely  assumed  to  consist  of  Christians 


rN^TRODUCTION  xvii 

Jewish  at  once  by  race  and  by  habit  and  feeling.     The  Epistle  has 
towards  them  two  strands  of  purpose.     Like  the  Apostolic  Epistles 
generally  it  contains  both  argument  and  exhortation ;  but  the  two 
are  interwoven  more  closely  than  is  usual.     Argument  passes  into 
exhortation :  exhortation  completes,  as  well  as  points,  the  argument. 
The  end  always  in  view  in  the  argument  is  to  shew  that  in  the 
Person  of  the  Christ,  the  Incarnate  Son  of  God,  as  anticipated  in 
Prophecy  and  realized  in  the  historical  JESUS,  the  Revelation  of 
the  Old  Testament   was  perfected  and  its  shadowy  and  typical 
atonements  were  explained  and  superseded.     The  end  aimed  at 
in  the  exhortation  is  to  stir  the  readers  to  a  fuller  appreciation  and 
use  of  the  grace  brought  to  them  (iv.  14-16,  x.  19-22).     But  there 
is  evidence  throughout  the  Epistle  of  something  beyond  this,  of  a 
state  of  distress  and  danger  which  has  called  forth  the  appeal  and 
which  gives  to  it  its  tone  both  of  earnestness  and  of  tenderness. 
They  are  expecting  and  in  a  modified  degree  already  suffering 
persecution  (xii.  4).     They  have  encountered  that  before  and  have 
met  it  with  constancy  (x.  32  f.),  but  at  present  there  are  conditions 
which  lessen  their  power  of  resistance.     There  is  disorganization 
with  its  natural  consequences :  the  loss  of  corporate  feeling,  leading 
to  the  neglect  of  the  weekly  assembly  (x.  25)  and  to  the  ignoring  of 
the  claims  of  Christian  wayfarers  (xiii.  2).     There  is  division  (see 
note  on  xiii.  20),  separation  between  leaders  and  people  (xiii.  17). 
There  are  suggestions  of  moral  danger  (xii.  16,  xiii.  4).    The  central 
mischief  is  indicated  as  despondency,  the  loss  of  proper  self-confidence 
and  hope.     It  seems  to  be  traced  to  the  reaction  which  comes  to 
men  who  have  taken  a  great  step  without  sufficiently  facing  its 
intellectual  grounds.     Misgivings  arise,  old  difficulties  recur.    They 
have  nothing  wherewith  to  meet  them  but  the  childish  teaching 
which  they  received  as  catechumens  (v.  11-vi,   3).      The  results 
fill  the  writer  with  alarm.     They  are  in  risk  of  "drifting  away" 
(ii.  1)  from  their  Christian  position— of  repeating  the  backsliding 
and  rebellion  of  Israel  in  the  wilderness  (iii.  7  f.),  of  falling  back 
into  the  attitude  of  those  who  crucified  the  Messiah  (vi.  6,  x.  29), 
of  incurring  the  penalties  denounced  in  the  Law  against  apostasy 
(ii.  2,  X.  28,  xii.  29).     There  are  three  things  to  be  added  to  this 
picture  of  the  condition  of  the  Church  addressed  so  far  as  it  appears 
in  the  Epistle. 

(a)  These  Jewish  Christians  are  what  we  call  in  St  Paul's 
Epistles  "Judaizers."  They  are  adding  to  the  Gospel  "a  patchwork 
of  alien  teachings"  (xiii.  9). 


xviii  INTRODUCTION 

(b)  We  seem  to  hear  as  the  Epistle  closes — in  what  reads 
like  a  postscript — (as  though  the  writer  found  courage  to  put  into 
words  what  had  been  in  his  heart  all  through)  a  call  to  choose  once 
for  all  between  Judaism  and  Christianity,  to  come  "outside  the 
camp"  (xiii.  13)  and  range  themselves  by  the  side  of  their 
excommunicated  Messiah. 

(c)  There  is  one  further  note  to  be  recognized  in  the  Epistle, 
the  sense  of  a  crisis  at  hand.  There  is  a  "day  approaching" 
(x.  25),  a  definitive  ending  of  "these  days"  (i.  2),  an  ending  of  the 
"to-day"  of  invitation  and  opportunity  (iii.  13);  a  coming  earth- 
quake in  which  all  that  can  be  removed  will  be  shaken,  in  order 
that  "what  cannot  be  shaken  may  remain"  (xii.  27).  We  seem  to 
be,  as  it  were,  at  the  moment  of  the  passing  of  a  dispensation. 

4.  If  this  is  a  fair  picture  of  the  Epistle  it  is  clear  that, 
in  default  of  external  evidence,  we  have  internal  indications 
which  go  some  way  to  determine  the  most  probable  time  and 
purpose  of  its  writing.  It  must  have  been  addressed  to  persons 
to  whom  the  Levitical  system  was  in  some  appreciable  sense  a  rival 
and  obstacle  to  the  fuU  acceptance  of  Christianity.  There  is,  no 
doubt,  room  for  difference  of  opinion  on  the  question,  what  constitutes 
such  an  appreciable  sense.  The  simplest  and  most  natural  explana- 
tion of  the  facts  is  that  the  Epistle  belongs  to  a  time  when  the 
Temple  services  were  still  performed.  On  the  face  of  it  the  Epistle 
seems  to  assert  that  this  was  actually  the  case.  The  writer  uses 
always  the  present  tense  in  speaking  of  the  Levitical  ritual'  (as  in 
ix.  6,  "the  priests  go  continually  into  the  first  Tabernacle").  It 
must  be  noticed  however  also  that  he  speaks  always  not  of  the 
Temple  but  of  the  Tabernacle :  in  other  words  his  eye  is  on  the  text 
of  Exodus,  not  on  what  was  happening  at  Jerusalem.  The  present 
tense  need  mean  no  more  than  that  "such  and  such  is  the  ritual 
prescribed  in  the  Mosaic  Law."  At  the  same  time  the  cessation  of 
the  sacrifices  was  such  an  overwhelming  event  to  a  Jew,  and  was 
such  a  manifest  confirmation  of  the  argument  of  the  Epistle,  that  it 
is  hard  to  believe  that,  if  it  had  happened,  the  writer  would  have 

1  The  case  is  not  quite  the  same  as  that  of  Clement  {Ep.  ad  Cor.  xli.)  who  uses 
the  present  tense  in  speaking  of  the  Levitical  services  though  he  wrote  25  years 
after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  He  is  not  writing  to  Jews ;  and  his  statements 
are  made  only  to  point  an  analogy:  "a  distinction  of  persons  and  places,"  he 
is  saying,  "is  a  vital  part  of  the  Levitical  ritual;  you  may  expect  therefore  some 
distinction  of  an  analogous  kind  in  the  Christian  services."  It  does  not 
matter  to  his  argument  whether  Mosaic  ritual  had  been  actually  disused  or 
not. 


INTRODUCTION  xix 

discussed  the  Levitical  services  at  such  length  without  betraying 
by  a  single  word  that  the  whole  system  had  come  to  an  end.  We 
cannot  but  add  to  this  that  the  tone  of  the  Epistle,  if  it  does  not 
require  the  hypothesis,  is  more  intelligible  if  we  suppose  that  it  was 
written  in  the  deepening  gloom  before  the  great  catastrophe  rather 
than  after  it.  The  great  appeal  in  ch.  xi.  for  faith,  after  the  example 
of  their  great  ancestors,  in  the  untried  and  unseen,  has  more  point 
if  we  imagine  that  there  was  still  in  existence  a  visible  system  of 
historic  ordinances  to  which  they  would  have  had  "  the  opportunity 
to  return"  (ch.  xi.  15),  than  if  the  sacrificial  system  itself  had  been 
reduced  to  a  memory  and  an  idea.  The  situation  gains  greatly  in 
tragic  significance  if  on  the  one  side  we  may  hear  in  the  last 
chapter  a  call  to  come  out  as  from  a  City  of  Destruction,  an  echo 
of  the  warnings  of  which  we  read  in  Mark  xiii.  14  f.;  and  if  on  the 
other  hand  in  the  tenderness  of  the  appeals,  in  the  space  given  to 
the  proofs  that  in  holding  their  Christian  ground  they  were  really 
acting  as  the  greatest  and  most  patriotic  of  their  race  had  acted,  we 
may  recognize  a  sense  that  their  trial  arose  in  part  from  a  generous 
motive,  that  it  was  a  moment  when  to  a  patriotic  Jew  it  was  hardest 
to  stand  aside  from  the  agony  of  his  nation. 

5.  The  alternative  to  placing  the  Epistle  before  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem  seems  to  be  to  place  it  as  late  as  possible;  i.e.  in  accor- 
dance with  what  has  been  already  said,  shortly  before  95^  a.d.  Some 
little  time  must  be  allowed  for  the  subsidence  of  the  feelings  which 
would  be  aroused  by  that  great  calamity  before  we  can  imagine  a 
writer  with  the  tact  and  tenderness  of  the  author  of  this  Epistle 
addressing  a  community  of  Jewish  Christians  on  such  subjects 
without  a  hint  of  what  had  happened.  With  the  later  date  will  go 
probably  a  destination  at  some  distance  from  Jerusalem,  whether  it 
be,  according  to  the  many  guesses  that  have  been  hazarded,  Rome 
or  Alexandria,  or  some  Eastern  Church.  There  will  also  go  some 
re-reading  of  the  purpose  of  the  Epistle  and  of  the  emphasis  to  be 
heard  on  one  and  another  of  its  topics.  The  hints  of  moral  dangers 
(xii.  16,  xiii.  4)  will  assume  more  meaning.  (It  has  indeed  been 
argued  that  the  mention  of  them  imphes  necessarily  a  centre  of 
population  where  the  mass  was  heathen:  but  this  cannot  be 
concluded  in  face  of  the  warnings  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 

1  This  is  fixed  as  the  latest  possible  date  by  the  date  of  the  Epistle  of 
Clement  (see  above,  p.  xi.),  which  cannot  itself  be  later  than  96  a.d.  if  the 
persecution,  mentioned  in  ch.  i.  of  it,  is  that  of  Domitian,  who  died  in  that  year. 


XX  INTRODUCTION 

(Matt.  V.  27  f.)  which  was  addressed  to  Jews.)  The  suggestion  also 
of  "divers  and  strange  teachings"  (xiii.  9)  will  acquire  a  larger  scope. 
What  is  feared  and  deprecated  will  appear  in  the  light  not  so  much 
of  a  simple  reversion  to  Judaism  as  of  a  corruption  of  Christianity, 
such  as  we  see  in  progress  in  the  Pastoral  Epistles  (see  1  Tim.  iv.  1-7, 
Tit.  i.  14  and  iii.  9)  and  earlier  still  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Colossians 
(ii.  16-23),  and  which  meets  us  in  a  more  developed  condition  in 
the  Ignatian  Epistles  to  Asiatic  Churches  (Lightfoot's  Apostolic 
Fathers,  vol.  i.  p.  359  f.),  a  mixture  of  Christianity,  Judaism,  and 
Gnosticism,  which  tampered  with  the  reality  of  the  Incarnation 
and  grafted  on  the  simplicity  of  the  Gospel  ascetic  doctrines  and 
practices  such  as  rules  about  "meats  and  drinks,"  and  disparagement 
of  marriage,  and  invented  fanciful  cults,  as  the  "worshipping  of 
angels"  (see  additional  note  on  p.  5  and  notes  on  ch.  ix.  10,  xiii.  4,  9). 
6.  In  deciding  between  the  earlier  and  the  later  date  we  have  no 
clear  help  from  the  internal  references  to  places  and  persons.  The 
salutation  (xiii.  24)  from  them  "of  Italy"  is  capable  of  several 
interpretations  and  will  suit  any  theory.  The  reference  to  Timothy 
(xiii.  23)  is  beyond  our  explanation.  It  points  to  one  of  the 
Pauline  circle  as  the  writer  of  the  Epistle ;  and  it  is  more  likely  that 
it  refers  to  a  date  near  the  time  when  Timothy  was  going  and  coming 
to  and  from  the  Apostle  than  (if  that  is  the  alternative)  to  a  time 
some  35  years  later.  Harnack,  supporting  the  theory  that  Rome  was 
the  destination  of  the  Epistle,  finds  evidence  of  it  in  the  fact  that 
the  Epistle  was  known  to  Clement ' :  but  that  argument  is  lessened 
in  weight  if,  when  Clement  quoted  it,  the  Epistle  had  been  in 
existence  for  some  30  years.  Harnack  is  thinking  of  it  as  having 
been  written  more  nearly  to  the  time  of  Clement's  own  Epistle. 


IV.     The  method  of  the  Epistle. 

1.  It  has  been  said  already  that  the  style  and  mode  of 
composition  are  different  from  those  of  St  Paul's  Epistles.  Origen 
summed  up  the  difi"erence  in  the  saying  that  this  Epistle  is  "more 
Greek."  It  is  "more  Greek"  especially  in  what  cannot  be  reproduced 
in  a  translation,  the  choice  and  balanced  ordering  of  words  with  a 
view  to  sound  as  well  as  sense  which  reminds  us  constantly  of  Greek 
rhetoric,  that  is  of  the  appeals  to  the  ear  which  their  Greek  nature 

^  Die  Chronologie  der  altchristlichen  Litteratur,  i.  477. 


INTRODUCTION  xxi 

taught  to  the  great  orators,  and  which  were  tabulated  and  imitated 
in  the  rhetorical  schools.  But  there  is  one  illustration  of  the 
difference  which  an  English  reader  can  follow  easily.  The  Epistle 
is,  in  a  sense  beyond  any  other  Epistle  in  the  New  Testament,  an 
artistic  whole.  It  is  a  letter,  but  at  the  same  time  it  is  an  impassioned 
treatise  or  piece  of  oratory  \  having  a  single  purpose,  ardently  felt, 
clearly  conceived,  never  lost  to  sight.  The  whole  argument  is  in 
view  from  the  beginning.  Whether  in  the  purely  argumentative 
passages  or  in  those  which  are  in  form  hortatory,  we  are  constantly 
meeting  phrases  which  are  to  be  taken  up  again  and  to  have  their 
fuU  meaning  given  to  them  later  on.  The  plan  itself  develops. 
While  the  figures  to  some  extent  change  and  take  fresh  colour, 
there  is  growing  through  aU,  in  trait  on  trait,  the  picture  which  the 
writer  designs  to  leave  before  his  readers'  minds.  This  artistic 
character  of  the  composition  has  to  be  remembered  in  interpretation 
of  the  Epistle,  and  even  in  questions  of  text.  It  is  not  only  a 
question  whether  a  given  interpretation  makes  the  writer  say  what 
is  true,  nor  even  what  is  in  harmony  with  what  he  says  elsewhere. 
The  question  will  be  whether  it  is  what  he  is  likely  to  have  said  in 
this  particular  place,  whether  he  has  reached  the  point  in  his 
argument  at  which  it  would  help  his  purpose.  The  writer,  it 
cannot  be  said  too  often,  writes  to  persuade.  The  meaning  in  the 
first  instance  of  any  particular  passage  is  the  meaning  which  its 
first  readers  would  put  upon  it,  and  which  would  to  them  and  at  that 
stage  in  the  argument  conduce  to  persuasion. 

2.  The  ultimate  purpose  of  the  Epistle,  as  we  read  it,  is  to  bring 
its  readers  (Jews  at  once  and  Christians,  but  hesitating,  looking 
back,  "babes"  at  present  in  the  deeper  meaning  of  their  new  faith) 
to  the  full  Christian  position,  to  preach  as  fully  as  St  Paul  that 
"Christ  is  the  end  of  the  Law,"  and  with  the  corollary,  which 
cannot  but  follow,  that  in  Him  "there  is  neither  Jew  nor  Gentile." 
But  though  the  end  will  be  the  same,  the  road  is  different.  This 
Epistle  is  addressed  to  Jewish  Christians  and  appeals  to  them  from 
the  point  of  view  of  their  own  Scriptures.  But  it  vivifies  those 
Scriptures.  It  exhibits  them  as  witnessing  continuously  to  some- 
thing greater,  to  a  spiritual  reality  of  which  the  Tabernacle  and  its 
rites  were  only  a  copy  and  shadow.  It  takes  the  readers  back 
behind  the  Levitical  ordinances  to  the  needs  of  human  nature 

1  In  the  writer's  own  phrase  it  is  "a  word  of  exhortation"  (xiii.  22),  i.e.  a 
Benuon  or  speech:  cf.  Acts  xiii.  15. 


xxii  INTRODUCTION 

to  which  they  were  meant  to  minister.  The  fear  of  death 
(ii.  15),  the  craving  for  sympathy  (ii.  17,  18,  iv.  15),  the  stings 
of  conscience  (ix.  14,  x.  22),  are  experiences  which  put  all 
mankind  on  a  level.  The  great  addition  which  the  Epistle 
makes  to  the  Pauline  presentment  of  the  Christian  scheme  is  in 
the  concentration  of  the  scattered  images,  by  which  the  relation 
of  the  life  and  death  of  Christ  to  human  sin  is  represented,  in  the 
fully  realized  figure  of  the  Great  High  Priest  offering  the  sacrifices 
as  of  the  Day  of  Atonement  and  entering  for  His  people  within  the 
veil.  That  went  home  directly  to  the  conscience  of  the  pious  Jew : 
but  in  applying  it,  the  Epistle  shews  that  what  Prophecy  bade  him 
look  for  was  a  High  Priest  who  while  He  fulfilled,  as  the  antitype, 
the  typical  functions  of  the  Aaronic  priesthood,  was  of  a  personality 
indefinitely  greater  than  Aaron's.  The  Priesthood  "after  the  order 
of  Melchizedek"  was  not  only  outside  of  the  Levitical  Law  but 
outside  of  the  sacred  race ;  representative  not  of  a  local  but  of  a 
world-wide  religion.  This  conclusion  is  not  pressed  in  words  ;  but 
it  is  behind  much  of  the  language  used  of  the  singleness,  the 
perfection,  the  spiritual  nature  of  the  work  of  the  Ideal  High  Priest. 
In  the  same  way  although  the  comparison  sets  out  only  to  shew  the 
Christian  dispensation  as  superior  to  the  Mosaic,  superior  in  the 
dignity  of  the  Intermediary  and  in  the  completeness  of  the 
Reconciliation,  as  the  argument  unfolds,  as  the  writer  explains  Who 
the  Intermediary  is,  as  he  dwells  on  the  completeness  and 
universality  of  the  Atonement,  it  is  clear — it  must  have  been 
clear  to  the  readers — that  what  has  been  asserted  is  not  merely 
the  superiority  of  Christianity  to  Judaism,  but  its  superiority  to  all 
religions,  its  position  as  the  One  religion,  the  final  and  sufficient 
Revelation  of  God  to  man. 


V.     General  summary  of  the  contents. 

i.  1-3.  The  Epistle  opens  with  a  comparison,  rhetorical  in  form, 

of  the  two  Dispensations.  Both  are  Revelations  from  God, 
but  they  are  contrasted  in  respect  of  (1)  character — the 
one  through  many  mouths,  occasional,  fragmentary :  the 
other  through  One,  complete  and  final.  (2)  the  dignity 
of  the  Intermediaries  :  (a)  the  prophets,  God's  mouthpieces : 
(6)  a  Son :   His  transcendent  dignity  (i)  in  His  essence^ 


INTRODUCTION  xxiii 

as  the  perfect  Revelation  of  the  Father's  Glory,  (ii)  in  His 
office,  as  the  Redeemer,  the  Messiah,  of  prophecy. 

N.B.  that  in  v.  3  ("when  he  had  made  purification  of 
sins,  sat  down  &c.")  we  are  introduced  (1)  to  the  truth 
that  both  Dispensations  are  not  Revelations  only,  but 
schemes  of  atonement  for  sin,  (2)  to  the  great  Messianic 
prophecy  of  Ps.  ex. ;  both  of  which  will  occupy  so  much 
space  in  the  Epistle. 

4.  "In  both  these  respects  He  stands  far  above  any  angel." 

[The  point  is  made  clearer  in  ch.  ii.  2,  "The  word  spoken 
by  angels."  The  Law  was  given  to  Moses  through  "the 
angel  which  spake  to  him  in  the  Mount  Sinai,"  Acts  vii. 
38,  53;  Gal.  iii.  19.] 

5-14.  This  needed  no  proof  to  any  one  who  accepted  the 
statement  of  what  He  was  in  essence  :  but  the  writer 
proves  it  in  respect  of  His  office  by  recalling  the  terms  in 
which  Psalmists  and  Prophets  had  admittedly  spoken 

(1)  of  the  Messiah  as  a  Son,  as  Himself  Divine, 

(2)  of  angels  as  servants,  created  beings. 

ii.  1-4.  A  hortatory  passage:     "If  the  Law  given  through 

angels  was  enforced  as  it  was,  what  of  those  who  fall 
away  from  so  much  more  august  a  Dispensation?" 

5-18.  The  writer  goes  back  to  prophecy  (Psalms  viii.  and  xxii. 

and  Isaiah  viii.)  to  shew  that  glorification  through  humilia- 
tion and  real  brotherhood  with  the  human  race  ("He  did 
not  come  to  help  angels,"  v.  16)  were  essential  parts  of  the 
historic  conception  of  the  Messiah. 

Incidentally  (vv.  14-18)  two  reasons  are  set  out  for  the 
real  incarnation  of  the  Son  of  God ;  viz.  to  meet  the  needs 
of  humanity  (1)  by  setting  men  free  from  the  fear  of  death, 
(2)  by  assuring  them  that  they  have  a  High  Priest  who 
can  at  once  feel  with  them  and  reconcile  them  to  God. 

This  last  point  opens  the  subject  which  will  take  so 
much  of  the  Epistle,  the  character  of  an  effectual  Priest- 
hood. 

iii.  1.  '  Our  thoughts  then  are  to  be  concentrated  on  "Jesus," 
as  (the  subject  is  divided  by  the  two  titles  which  are 
applied  to  Him)  at  once  "the  Apostle"  (i.e.  the  Envoy — 


xxiv  INTRODUCTION 

the  title  coining  from  the  verb  used  in  Exodus  of  the 
"mission"  of  Moses)  "and  the  High  Priest  whom  we 
confess." 

2-6.  Jesus  is  the  Moses  of  the  new  Dispensation.     But  we 

are  bidden  to  contrast  the  terms  used  of  the  two  :  Moses 
has  high  praise,  but  as  a  servant  in  God's  house:  the 
Messiah  is  the  Son,  over  His  own  house. 

7-19.  Here  the  writer  pauses  again  to  press  a  lesson  from 
this  second  contrast.  He  does  this  in  the  words  of  Psalm 
xcv.  That  Psalm  had  a  double  force:  (1)  It  reminded 
them  how  their  forefathers  fell  away  from  Moses  and  so 
forfeited  the  promised  rest. 

iv.  1-13.  (2)  It  was  a  standing  witness  that  in  the  counsels  of 
God  there  had  always  been  a  rest  looked  forward  to,  more 
complete  and  abiding  than  the  rest  which  Joshua  gave  them 
in  Canaan.  Let  them  beware  of  repeating  their  forefathers' 
sin ;  for  God's  revelation  was  not  to  be  trifled  with. 

14-16.  Then  he  turns  to  the  other  title.  Christ  is  not  the 
Moses  only,  but  the  Aaron  also  of  the  new  Dispensation. 
In  this  case  the  practical  exhortation  comes  first:  "Seeing 
that  we  have  such  a  high  priest,  let  us  hold  fast  our 
profession  (not  fall  away,  as  they  were  inclined  to  do)  and 
come  boldly  to  the  throne  of  grace."  [Notice  that  this 
exhortation  is  taken  up  again  in  ch.  x.  19  when  the 
Priesthood  of  Christ  has  been  fully  set  forth.] 

V.  1-10.  Here  begins  the  exposition  of  the  statement  that  the 
Christ  is  the  true  High  Priest.  "What  are  the  necessary 
conditions  of  a  human  High  Priest?"  (1)  That  he 
should  be  a  partaker  of  human  infirmities,  in  order  that 
he  may  have  a  fellow-feeling  :  (2)  that  His  office  should 
not  be  self-assumed,  but  assigned  to  him  by  God,  as  Aaron's 
was. 

See  then  how  the  Messiah  fulfils  both  requirements : 
for  (1)  as  man  He  passed  through  the  discipline  of  suffering 
to  the  power  of  atoning  for  men,  (2)  the  same  Voice  which 
in  Ps.  ii.  hailed  Him  as  the  Royal  Son  names  Him  in 
Ps.  ex.  the  Eternal  Priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek. 


INTRODUCTION  xxv 

^' A  Priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek."  This 
is  the  phrase  from  Ps.  ex.  in  which  the  writer  seems  to 
find  what  he  was  feeling  after,  a  way  of  explaining  without 
offence  to  Jewish  susceptibilities  the  relation  between  the 
11-14.  Priesthood  of  Christ  and  the  Priesthood  of  the  Law.  It 
will  be  the  key  to  much  of  the  remaining  part  of  the 
Epistle :  but  before  entering  on  its  explanation  he  pauses 
to  ask  for  special  attention  and  to  meet  the  objection  that 
he  is  offering  his  readers  something  novel  and  hard.  "It 
is  hard,"  he  answers  in  effect,  "and  novel,  in  the  sense  that 
all  new  lessons  are.  But  you  must  face  such  difficulties, 
or  you  cannot  advance.     You  cannot  be  children  always." 

vi.  1-12.  Let  us  leave  then  (here  begins  ch.  vi.)  the  elementary 
teaching  that  befits  catechumens  and  go  on  to  fuller  Christian 
truth.  There  is  one  thing  thatwe  will  not  suppose,  mz.falllng 
hack.  We  have  no  teaching  still  in  store  that  can  cure  that. 
Your  fault  lies  in  want  of  hopefulness.  Imitate  the  faith 
and  patience  of  Abraham.  Your  security  in  the  promise  is 
the  same  as  his  and  yet  greater.  It  is  in  heaven  whither 
Jesus  has  entered  [interpreting  the  symbolism  of  the  Great 
Day  of  Atonement]  through  the  veil,  both  to  make  atone- 
ment and  as  a  pledge  that  you  also  may  enter. 

vii.  1-10.  The  explanation  of  the  phrase  "a  priest  for  ever  after 
the  order  of  Melchizedek"  falls  into  two  parts. 

1.  A  recalling  of  the  wording  in  Gen.  xiv.  in  order 
to  shew  what  material  the  Psalmist  had  in  the  story 
for  his  conception — the  import  of  the  names — the  silence 
of  Scripture  as  to  predecessor  or  successor  [the  suggestion 
being  that  the  Psalmist  implied  that  a  priesthood  "after 
his  order"  would  be  an  eternal  and  superhuman  one] — 
the  relation  of  superiority  which  Melchizedek  assumes 
to  Abraham. 
11-28.  2.     The  conclusions  to  be  drawn  by  way  of  comment 

on  the  prophecy  in  Ps.  ex.  Is  it  not  clear  that  it  implied 
that  the  Levitical  priesthood,  and  therefore  the  Levitieal 
Law,  was  incomplete  and  temporary  ?  All  the  phrases 
"the  Lord  sware,"  "for  ever"  are  meant  to  convey  the 
sense  of  greater  solemnity,  higher  dignity.  The  Priest  of 
the  Law  was  a  man,  full  of  infirmities.     The  Priest  of  the 


XXVI 


INTRODUCTION 


Oath  (the  priest  for  whom  human  nature  craved)  is  God's 
own  Son,  with  every  qualification  perfected  eternally. 

viii.  1-4.  So  much  for  the  personality  of  the  ideal  High  Priest — 
but  now  for  His  functions.  He  must  (this  is  part  of  the 
definition  of  a  High  Priest)  have  "something  to  offer." 
But  where  and  what?  Not  on  earth,  for  the  place  is 
occupied  by  the  Levitical  priests. 

Before  proceeding  to  exhibit  the  failure  of  the  Levitical 
system  of  sacrifices  and  to  contrast  them  with  the  One 
perfect  and  all-sufficient  Sacrifice,  the  writer  falls  back 
again  on  two  passages  in  the  Old  Testament  which  prepare 
the  way  for  his  exposition. 

5,  6.  1.  (The  answer  to  "where?")  He  reminds  his  readers 
that  the  Tabernacle  and  all  its  appurtenances  were 
confessedly  in  their  beginning  only  copies  of  eternal 
realities  shewn  to  Moses  in  the  mount. 

7-13.  2.  (The  answer  to  "what?")  He  recalls  at  length 
the  prophecy  of  Jer.  xxxi.  which  speaks  of  a  new  and  more 
effectual  Covenant  which  was  to  supersede  the  Mosaic 
Covenant. 

ix,  1-10.  He  then  proceeds  to  recall  in  detail  the  elaborate 
arrangements  of  the  Levitical  sanctuary  and  provisions 
for  service ;  but  to  point  out  that  the  very  division  of  the 
Holy  place  from  the  Holy  of  Holies  and  the  restricted 
access  allowed  to  the  latter  were  a  confession  that  a 
meeting-place  of  God  and  man  was  not  yet  found.  It  was 
the  same  with  the  ordinances  of  service,  all  was  imperfect, 
material,  typical. 

11-14.  The  better  system  had  now  come — the  better,  heavenly, 
sanctuary — the  eternal  redemption — the  spiritual  sacrifice. 

15.      This  was  the  sacrifice  waited  for  to  give  efficacy  to  the 
atonements  of  the  Old  Covenant. 

16-28.  The  following  section  is  apologetic,  answering  (but 
without  fully  stating  the  difficulty  which  it  answers)  the 
objection  felt  by  a  Jew  to  associating  the  Messiah  with 
death.     He  answers  it  by  three  analogies. 

1.  The  necessary  association  of  a  testament  with  the 
death  of  the  testator. 


INTRODUCTION  xxvii 

2.  The  inauguration  by  sacrifice  of  the  Old  Covenant. 

3.  The  principle  which  ran  through  the  Levitical  Law 
that  sacrifice  was  necessary  to  atonement — typical  shedding 
of  blood  for  ceremonial  atonement,  but  something  more 
august  for  the  cleansing  of  the  "heavenly  things" — the 
One  Sacrifice  that  crowns  the  ages  and,  once  and  for  all, 
puts  away  sin. 

X.  1-18.  Summing  up  of  the  argument.  The  Law  was  an 
outline  of  good  things  to  come,  not  the  real  presentation 
of  the  things.  The  "blood  of  bulls  and  goats  could  not 
take  away  sin."  Once  more  the  finality  of  the  Christian 
Sacrifice  is  put  on  the  authority  of  Scripture,  Ps.  xl.,  Ps.  ex., 
Jer.  xxxi. 

19-25.  Here  the  argument  proper  is  ended,  and  the  exhorta- 
tion recommences.  First  the  writer  recalls  what  they 
had  gained  in  Christianity  as  it  was  stated  in  ch.  iv.  14. 
All  that  was  said  there  of  the  duty  of  using  the 
privileges  won  by  the  "great  High  Priest"  can  be  said 
again  now  with  fuller  understanding.  One  thing  that  is 
added  here  is  the  call  to  an  unselfish  religion  and  to 
standing  together  in  the  days  of  trial  at  hand  {vv.  24,  25). 

26-31.  The  appeal  for  steadfastness  and  unity  is  then  put  on 
three  grounds. 

1.     The  terrible  danger  of  apostasy. 

32-39.  2.  The  memory  of  their  own  Christian  courage  and 
charity  in  time  past. 

xi.  and  3.     The  historic  glory  of  faith  in  the  unseen,  with  its 

xii.  1,  2.     climax  in  Jesus  Himself  and  its  lessons  for  themselves. 

The  rest  of  ch.  xii.  falls  into  three  parts. 
3-11.      1.     An  exhortation  to  view  suffering  as  God's  loving 
discipline. 
12-17.      2.     Warnings  against  moral  inconsistencies. 
18-29.      3.     A    peroration    consisting   of  a    fervidly    worded 
contrast  between  the  two   Covenants. 

xiii.  The  last  chapter  reads  as  a  postscript.     It  emphasizes 

the  moral  warnings  ;   but  it  also  reveals   several  fresh 
features  in  the  supposed  situation.    The  persons  addressed 


ixviii  INTRODUCTION 

are  Judaizers,  adding  to  the  Gospel  a  "patchwork  of  alien 
doctrines"  and  practices.  They  are  at  issue  with  the 
"leaders"  of  their  Church.  They  need  to  be  summoned 
to  choose  once  for  all  between  Judaism  and  Christianity, 
to  come  "  outside  the  camp  "  and  take  their  place  by  the 
crucified  Christ. 

The  Epistle  ends  with  a  blessing  which  recalls  some  of 
its  topics,  with  a  last  word  of  apology,  and  some  short 
greetings. 


PARAPHRASE   OF  THE   EPISTLE 

The  two  Revelations  (i.  1,  2). 

There  have  been  two  Revelations,  both  from  God.  There  was  the  one 
which  we  know  so  well,  which  was  given  to  our  forefathers  through  the 
long  succession  of  the  Prophets.  The  Revelation  which  has  been  given  to 
us  is  what  that  was  not.  It  has  come  to  close  the  era  which  the  other 
began  and  went  along  with.  It  is  complete  and  final  where  that  was 
occasional  and  fragmentary.  It  is  single  in  form  (in  One  Person  and  Life) 
where  that  was  manifold.  It  is  given  to  us  not  through  human  mouthpieces 
but  through  One  Who  is  Himself  God's  own  Son,  the  predestined  Heir  for 
Whom,  as  well  as  the  Agent  by  Whom,  everything,  past,  present  and  to 
come,  has  been  created. 

The  Son  as  the  Revealbr  (3,  4). 

He  is — that  is  His  essential  Being — the  Supreme  Revealer,  in  that  He 
is  Himself  the  perfect  image  of  God,  the  sustainer,  by  His  creative  word,  of 
all  life.  But  He  is  supreme  not  only  in  His  eternal  relation  to  God  and  to 
everything  that  is  or  can  be,  but  also,  since  He  entered  the  world  of 
becoming,  in  His  Incarnation  and  Exaltation,  He  wrought  the  complete 
atonement  for  human  sin;  and  then  He  fulfilled  the  prophecy  of  Ps.  ex.  and 
"  sat  down  at  God's  right  hand,"  the  eternal  Priest- King,  supreme  in  His 
human  nature  over  the  highest  created  beings,  as  the  Scriptures  have 
witnessed  by  the  Name  which,  according  to  them.  He  was  to  claim  as  His 
birthright. 

Comparison  of  the  Messiah  with  the  angels  (5-14). 

He  was  to  be  (that  is  to  say)  God's  own  Son  (Pss.  ii.  and  Ixxxix., 
2  Sam.  vii.),  the  object  in  His  Incarnation  of  worship  to  the  angels 
(Deut.  xxxii.).  The  angels  themselves  were  spoken  of  as  God's  agents  in 
the  material  sphere,  as  "becoming"  winds  and  fire  (Ps.  civ.);  the  Christ 
of  prophecy  was  spoken  of  as  God's  Vicegerent  in  the  moral  sphere,  as  the 
eternal,  righteous  King  (Ps.  xlv.). 

To  the  material  world  He  was  to  be  the  Creator,  Who  is  for  ever,  whereas 
all  created  things  pass  (Ps.  cii.). 

To  sum  up  in  the  quotation  made  already  from  Ps.  ex..  He  was  to  be  the 
Co-sessor  on  God's  throne :  they  are  (as  we  read  often  in  the  Psalms)  the 
messengers  despatched  to  do  Him  service  by  ministering  to  His  people. 

H,  C 


XXX  PARAPHRASE 

The  attention  thus  bespoken  for  the  Revelation  itself  (il  1-4). 

Stop  now  for  a  moment  to  reflect  what  earnest  attention  all  this  bespeaks 
for  the  Revelation  itself.  If  the  old  Revelation,  given  through  the  media- 
tion of  angels,  had  such  sanctions ;  what  can  we  expect  if  we  treat  lightly  a 
message  of  deliverance  so  much  more  wonderful — a  message  brought  by  the 
Lord  Himself,  and  resting,  for  us,  not  only  on  the  testimony  of  those  who 
heard  Him  with  their  own  ears,  but  also  on  the  testimony  to  their  credi- 
bility borne  by  God  in  miracles  and  supernatural  gifts  ? 

The  Son  as  the  Reconciler.    The  reason  here,  in  the  nature 

OF  THE   case,    for  A   REAL   INCARNATION  (5-18). 

We  have  spoken  of  the  infinite  superiority  of  the  Son  to  any  angel.  But 
in  truth  the  Scripture  says  of  man  what  it  says  of  no  angel.  There  is  no 
prophecy  of  the  sovereignty  of  angels  over  the  world  as  it  is  to  be:  but 
there  is  a  prophecy  (in  Ps.  viii.)  which  speaks  of  the  universal  dominion 
meant  for  man,  though  he  starts  from  a  place  below  the  angels.  To  the 
human  race  as  a  whole  that  prophecy  is  not  yet  fulfilled;  but  we  see  it 
fulfilled  in  Jesus,  "  made  a  little  lower  than  the  angels,"  humiliated  even  to 
the  suflFering  of  death ;  yet  for  that  death  "crowned  with  glory  and  honour" ; 
and  all  in  the  loving  purpose  of  God  that  He  should  taste  the  bitterness  of 
death  for  all  mankind.  Do  we  cavil  or  wonder  ?  It  was  surely  in  perfect 
accordance  with  God's  Nature  (and  what  more  can  be  asked?),  when  He 
brought  many  sons  to  glory,  to  let  their  Leader  win  His  perfect  qualifica- 
tion through  suffering. 

The  Cousecrator  of  the  holy  nation  and  the  holy  nation  itself  are  of  one 
Pather.  This  is  why  in  the  prophetic  Scriptures  the  Messiah  is  pictured  as 
calling  the  members  of  the  Church  His  "  brethren "  (Ps.  xxii.),  as  leading 
their  worship  (ibid.),  as  putting  Himself  by  their  side  in  His  attitude 
towards  God  (Is.  viii.),  as  claiming  them  as  children  given  to  Him  by  God 
(ibid.).  "  Children,"  "  brethren  "  !  Then  there  must  be  some  community  of 
conditions  between  them.  They  are  of  flesh  and  blood.  They  are  subject 
to  death.  So  He  took  flesh  and  blood,  and  subjected  Himself  to  death, 
that  so  He  might  make  death  itself  the  instrument  in  reducing  to  impotence 
him  who  wields  the  power  of  death,  the  accusing  spirit,  and  might  set  free, 
as  from  an  Egyptian  bondage,  those  whom  the  fear  of  death  kept  in  slavery. 
He  came  not  to  lend  a  hand  of  rescue  to  angels,  but  (as  Moses  did)  to  sons 
of  Abraham.  So  from  all  sides  it  was  of  the  essence  of  His  purpose  that 
He  should  be  made  really  like  to  His  brethren,  that  in  the  High-Priestly 
work  of  reconciliation,  through  which  the  rescue  was  to  be  accomplished, 
He  might  be  able  to  represent  men  as  towards  God,  and  to  make  them 
trust  Him  as  feeling  with  them.  They  are  tempted  and  they  suflFer ;  and 
therefore  He  must  have  been  tempted  and  have  suflered. 

Christ  at  once  the  Moses  and  Aaron  of  the  New  Dispensation 
(in.  1). 

Thinking  then  of  this  holy  brotherhood  which  you  share,  of  the  call  from 
heaven  which  you  have  heard  as  much  as  your  forefathers  heard  it,  set  your 
whole  thoughts  on  Him  whom  you  have  acknowledged  to  be  to  you  at  once 
all  that  Moses  and  all  that  Aaron  was  to  them. 


PARAPHRASE  xxxi 

All  that  Moses  was — but  how  much  greater  than  Moses!  (2-6). 

It  was  said  of  Moses  [l  Sam.  xii.  6;  Numb.  xii.  7]  that  he  was  "faithful  to 
God  who  appointed  him,"  "faithful  in  all  God's  house."  The  same  may 
be  said  of  the  Second  Moses.  But  do  not  forget  the  difference.  He  who 
builds  and  furnishes  a  house  is  of  more  account  than  the  house:  and 
God  is  the  Builder  of  the  house,  as  of  all  things.  Moses  was  the  faithful 
"servant"  in  the  house.  His  part  was  to  bear  witness  to  a  greater 
Revelation  yet  to  come.  The  Christ  is  the  "Son"  of  the  Owner  of  the 
house  ;  over  the  house,  not  in  it.  We  are  the  house ;  if  only  we  maintain 
the  high  tone  of  proud  and  confident  hope. 

Ps.  XCV.  HOLDS  UP  (1)  A  WARNING  AGALNST  REPEATING  IsRAEL's  SIN 
IN  REBELLING  AGAINST  THEIR   MoSES   (7-19). 

Remember  then  the  warning  of  Ps.  xcv.  Take  heed  lest  what  happened 
to  your  forefathers  happen  to  you ;  lest  there  be  found  presently  in  some  of 
you  that  opposite  of  the  "honest  and  good  heart,"  a  heart  that  will  not 
listen,  that  "errs"  (as  the  Psalm  says),  falls  away  from  God  as  your  fathers 
knew  Him,  the  True,  the  Terrible.  Exhort,  encourage  one  another  day  by 
day,  while  the  time  for  hearing  God's  voice  lasts;  lest  any  of  you  be 
hardened  through  one  of  the  many  delusions  by  which  sin  closes  the  ears. 
For  those  words  addressed  to  you, 

"To-day  if  ye  shall  hear  his  voice, 
Harden  not  your  hearts  as  in  the  provocation," 
imply  that  you,  like  your  forefathers,  have  i-eceived  a  great  privilege,  but 
subject  to  a  great  risk.     You  are  partners  with  the  Messiah,  in  His  enter- 
prise. His  salvation.  His  glory,  if  only  you  keep  to  the  end  that  courage 
and  pride  in  His  cause  vdth  which  you  began. 

For  what  does  that  "provocation"  mean?  Who  provoked?  Was 
it  not  the  mass  of  those  who  had  been  rescued  from  Egypt  by  Moses? 
With  whom  was  He  "displeased  forty  years"?  Was  it  not  the  whole 
nation  that  sinned  and  so  left  their  bones  in  the  wilderness  ?  To  whom  did 
He  "  swear  that  they  should  not  enter  into  His  rest "  ?  Was  it  not  to  those 
who  were  disobedient?  And  we  see  that  the  threat  was  fulfilled.  They 
could  not  enter  in  because  they  did  not  listen. 

(2)  An  ASSURANCE  THAT  THERE  IS  STILL  AN  OFFER  OF  God's  REST, 
TO   BE  ACCEPTED   OR   FORFEITED   (iV.    1-13). 

Seeing  then  what  on  that  occasion  befel  God's  redeemed  people,  and 
seeing  that  there  is  a  promise  still  unfulfilled,  and  still  holding,  of  entering 
into  God's  rest,  we  may  well  fear  lest  some  of  you  (we  hardly  like  to  say  it) 
should  fail  of  it.  For  indeed  we  are  like  them  in  that  we  have  had  good 
tidings  brought  to  us,  as  they  had.  But  the  message,  though  it  reached 
them,  did  them  no  good,  because  those  who  heard  it  lacked  the  faith  which 
was  necessary  to  give  it  effect  [see  note  on  difficulty  of  text  and  therefore 
of  exact  interpretation].  We,  I  say,  have  had  good  tidings  brought  to  us  ; 
for  we  are  on  our  way,  we  that  have  accepted  the  Christian  offer,  to  that 
perfect  rest  of  which  Ps.  xcv.  spoke  in  the  words  "  into  my  rest."    It  was 

c2 


xxxii  PARAPHRASE 

not  speaking  of  God  Himself  as  entering  into  rest :  for  His  work  was  done 
at  the  Creation,  as  Gen.  ii.  2  testifies.  But  put  together  Gen.  ii.  2  and 
Ps.  xcv.  and  it  follows  that  there  were  some  still  for  whom  that  rest 
"remained."  It  was  not  attained  by  Israel  in  the  wilderness  to  whom 
the  good  tidings  first  came,  for  they  failed  from  lack  of  obedience ;  and  so 
the  promise  is  repeated  in  Ps.  xcv.,  a  long  time  afterwards;  for  neither 
was  the  rest  given  by  Joshua  the  perfect  rest.  There  is  therefore  still  in 
store  for  God's  people  a  real  "sabbath-keeping,"  a  rest  (in  other  words)  like 
the  rest  of  God's  seventh  day;  for  "God's  rest"  must  mean  a  real  cessation, 
like  that  of  God,  from  work. 

Let  us  then  make  every  eflfort  to  enter  into  that  rest,  and  avoid  the 
example  of  those  who  forfeited  it  by  disobedience.  For  the  warnings  of 
God's  Word  are  serious:  it  is  not  a  dead  thing,  but  living,  as  He  is; 
piercing  to  the  depths  of  soul  and  spirit,  as  the  sharpest  sword  might 
penetrate  to  the  joint,  to  the  marrow  within  the  bone.  It  judges  the 
thoughts  and  purposes.  No  creature  in  all  the  world  can  avoid  the  All- 
seeing  Eye. 

The  Greater  Aaron  {see  iii.  1).    The  High  Priest  at  once  human 

AND   superhuman   (14-16). 

Let  us  hold  fast  then  to  the  truth  as  we  have  acknowledged  it.  As  was 
said  before,  we  have  a  High  Priest,  one  so  great,  one  who  has  passed  not 
through  the  veil  of  an  earthly  tabernacle  but  through  the  heavens,  Jesus, 
our  human  Saviour,  but  the  Son  of  God.  In  spite  of  His  greatness  He  is 
not  beyond  our  sphere.  He  can  feel  with  us  ;  for  He  has  been  tried  even 
as  we  are  in  all  points,  save  that  He  did  not  yield  to  sin.  Let  us  avail 
ourselves  of  the  access  opened  by  our  High  Priest  and  draw  near  boldly  to 
the  Mercy  Seat  to  receive  pardon  and  grace. 

Two  requirements  to  a  High  Priest's  office  (v.  1-4). 

"We  have  a  high  priest."  Think  then  of  the  two  conditions  required  in 
a  human  high  priest.     He  is  to  stand  between  God  and  man :  therefore 

1.  As  from  the  side  of  the  people,  he  must  be  one  of  those  whom  he 
represents,  in  order  that  from  his  own  consciousness  of  weakness,  which 
obliges  him  to  ofi'er  sacrifices  for  his  own  sins  as  well  as  those  of  the  people, 
he  may  learn  to  be  tolerant  of  infirmity. 

2.  As  from  the  side  of  God,  he  must  be  not  self-appointed  but  "called" 
as  was  Aaron. 

Both  requirements  fulfilled  in  the  Christ  (5-10). 

The  Christ  fulfils  both  conditions.  He  "  glorified  not  Himself  to  be  an 
High  Priest."  The  same  Voice  of  God  in  prophecy  which  hailed  Him  as 
the  "  Son "  hailed  Him  also  as  the  "  Priest  for  ever  after  the  order  of 
Melchizedek."  But  yet.  Son  though  He  was,  He  submitted  to  the  same 
discipline  as  men,  and  learned  obedience,  as  they  learn  it,  by  suffering,  and 
then  when  this  qualification  was  fuUy  attained  became,  to  all  who  wiU  learn 
the  same  lesson,  the  "  author  of  an  everlasting  salvation  " ;  for  (as  we  have 


PARAPHRASE  xxxiii 

seen)  God  Himself  had  named  Him  the  "  High  Priest  after  the  order  of 
Melchizedek." 

[In  this  twice  repeated  phrase  the  writer  has  found  the  expression  by 
which  to  expound  to  Jewish  Christians  the  truth  that  the  Christ  is,  and 
according  to  prophecy  was  to  be,  the  Second  Aaron,  but  as  in  the  com- 
parison with  Moses,  a  greater  than  Aaron.  But  be/ore  doing  so  he 
pauses  to  appeal  for  a  fair  hearing  for  what  he  evidently  treats  as  a 
novel  argument.'] 

Apology  for  the  difficulty  and  (in  a  sense)  novelty  of  the 
argument  (11-14). 

In  using  this  phrase  ("  the  high  priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek  ") 
we  are  opening  a  matter  on  which  there  is  much  to  say  and  in  which  you 
will  find  difficulties;  but  this  is  because  a  torpor  has  settled  on  your 
spiritual  intelligence.  You  have  been  Christians  long  enough  to  be  now 
teachers  of  Christian  truth:  but  you  have  fallen  back  to  the  position  of 
those  who  need  to  learn  the  alphabet  of  the  Christian  reading  of  Holy 
Scripture.  You  have  come  to  want  again  the  milk  for  babes.  That  means 
that  you  have  not  yet  that  exercised  moral  sense  which  wiU  enable  you  to 
discern  for  yourselves,  in  a  matter  where  conscience  is  concerned,  what  is 
to  be  chosen  and  what  is  to  be  refused. 

The  duty  of  advance,  and  the  risk  of  falling  back  (vl  1-9). 

Come  then,  let  us  leave  behind  us  the  first  lessons  of  Christian  teaching, 
of  repentance  and  faith,  of  the  meaning  of  washings  and  laying  on  of  hands, 
of  resurrection  and  judgement.  They  are  the  necessary  foundations  for 
a  Catechumen :  but  it  is  time  to  go  forward.  That  is  what  I  desire  and 
purpose  for  you.  For  indeed  the  thought  of  going  back  is  terrible — of 
having  seen  the  light,  tasted  the  gift,  shared  in  the  outpouring  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  learnt  the  value  of  God's  Revelation  and  the  powers  of  the 
New  Dispensation,  and  then  of  falling  away  from  it  all.  There  is  no 
teaching  kept  in  store  to  give  a  fresh  start  and  change  of  view  to  those 
who  put  themselves  back  into  the  place  of  those  who  crucified  our  Lord 
and  who  in  this  way  put  Him  to  shame  in  the  eyes  of  the  world.  They 
are  like  land  for  which  the  skies  and  the  tiller  have  done  all  that  can 
be  done :  it  must  now  earn,  if  not  the  blessing  of  fertility,  the  curse  of 
barrenness. 

The  need  of  hopefulness  (9-12). 

But,  beloved,  we  know  well  that  this  is  not  your  case.  You  have 
something  better  than  the  spiritual  gifts  I  have  named.  You  have  shewn 
— God  will  not  forget  it — the  great  grace  of  love,  for  His  Name  and  for  all 
who  bear  it.  What  we  eagerly  desire  is  to  see  an  equally  earnest  setting  of 
your  minds  in  the  direction  of  hopefulness — hopefulness  in  spite  of  dis- 
couragements— that  you  may  wake  up  from  your  torpor  and  imitate  those 
of  all  time  who  have  trusted  and  been  patient  and  have  come  into  possession 
of  what  was  promised  to  them. 


xxxiv  PARAPHRASE 

God's  sworn  promises — to  Abraham  and  to  us  (13-20). 

Remember  Abraham's  story.  We  read  that  God  had  promised  to  bless 
and  multiply  his  seed,  and  that  He  confirmed  this  promise  by  an  oath  "  by 
Himself";  that  Abraham  believed  and  was  patient,  and  that  the  promise 
was  fulfilled. 

It  is  a  condescension  to  human  weakness.  An  oath  is  an  appeal  to  one 
who  is  gi-eater  than  he  that  swears :  and  that  appeal  in  human  affairs  is  felt 
to  give  security.  God  has  none  greater  than  Himself  ;  but  in  His  desire  to 
give  even  superfluous  security  to  those  who  should  stand  in  Abraham's 
place  and  look  forward  to  the  fulfilment  to  themselves  of  the  promise  made 
to  him,  He  has  again  [in  Ps.  ex.]  interposed  with  an  oath ;  that  they  might 
have  every  encouragement  to  hold  fast  to  the  hope  offered  them  as  an 
anchor  in  a  harbour  of  refuge — the  hope  in  Him  who  has  entered  within 
the  veil,  not  as  their  representative  only,  but  as  their  forerunner;  their 
High  Priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek,  their  High  Priest  for  ever. 

The  meaning  of  the  prophecy  of  a  High  Priest  after  the  order 

OF   MliLCHIZEDEK. 

1.    Materials  for  an  explanation  (vn.  1-10). 

For  what  is  the  meaning  which  the  Psalmist  put  on  the  words  "  after 
the  order  of  Melchizedek"  ?  The  Melchizedek  of  whom  he  spoke  was  the 
Melchizedek  of  Gen.  xiv.  He  thought  of  his  names  and  titles  and  of  the 
actions  attributed  to  him — the  "  king  of  righteousness,"  "  king  of  peace," 
"  priest  of  the  most  high  God."  He  thought  of  the  way  in  which  he  appears 
and  disappears  in  the  story — with  no  human  pedigree,  no  visible  beginning 
and  ending — of  his  fitness  in  these  respects  to  be  a  type  of  the  Divine  Son. 
All  this  meant  to  him  a  Priesthood  which  suffered  no  breach  of  continuity. 

Think  again  of  the  dignity  of  this  supposed  figure.  Compare  him  with 
Abraham.  We  find  the  father  of  our  race  giving  to  him  the  best  of  the 
spoil.  The  Levitical  priests,  no  doubt,  are  bidden  by  the  Law  to  take 
tithes  of  their  brethren,  the  sons,  like  themselves,  of  Abraham.  But  here 
we  have  one  who  is  not  in  pedigree  of  their  race  taking  tithes  of  Abraham, 
and  assuming,  by  blessing  him,  the  position  of  the  superior.  Compare  him 
with  the  Levitical  priests.  They  take  tithes,  but  it  is  as  men,  that  come  and 
go.  He  takes  tithes ;  but  [in  the  picture  given  to  us  in  Scripture]  he  does 
not  die.  Is  it  too  much  to  say  that  Levi  himself,  as  Abraham's  unborn 
descendant,  paid  tithes  in  Abraham  to  Melchizedek  ? 

2.  The  explanation  (11-28).  The  supersession  of  the  Levitical 
Priesthood,  and,  if  so,  of  the  Levitical  Law. 

What  are  the  conclusions  from  this  sm*vey  ? 

Does  not  the  existence  of  such  a  prophecy  of  a  "  Priest  after  the  order 
of  Melchizedek  "  necessarily  imply  that  the  Law  itself  (of  which  the  Priest- 
hood is  the  foundation)  was  imperfect  and  temporary?  The  Priesthood 
could  not  be  changed  without  changing  the  Law.  And  the  Law  was 
changed — changed  in  the  matter  of  Tribe :  for  oui*  Lord  was  of  the  tribe 


PARAPHRASE  xxxv 

of  Judah,  the  kingly,  not  the  priestly  tribe— changed  in  mode  of  appoint- 
ment. The  Levitical  priests  were  appointed  "after  the  law  of  a  carnal 
commandment,"  i.e.  on  conditions  which  belong  to  this  life  in  the  flesh 
—the  priest  "after  the  order  of  Melchizedek"  in  virtue  of  a  spiritual  and 
indestructible  life.  The  prophecy  implies  the  supersession  of  that  "carnal 
commandment,"  for  its  impotence  and  uselessness,  and  the  introduction  of 
a  better  hope,  giving  true  access  to  God. 

We  learn  the  same  thing  again  from  the  words  in  the  Psalm,  "  the  Lord 
sware."  There  is  no  such  phrase  used  of  the  institution  of  the  Levitical 
Priesthood.  It  spoke  of  the  greater  solemnity  of  the  new  and  better 
Covenant. 

And  once  more,  "for  ever."  Contrast  the  priests,  many,  because  none 
continues,  with  the  One  Continuous  and  Eternal  Priest,  who  can  "  save  to 
the  uttermost"  because  He  lives  for  ever  and  lives  to  intercede. 

To  sum  up,  such  was  the  High  Priest  that  human  nature  needed— One 
really,  not  in  figure  only,  blameless  in  every  relation,  toward  God,  toward 
man,  toward  Himself— really  separated  from  sinners  and  raised  above  the 
heavens— who  has  not  constantly  fresh  need,  like  the  Levitical  high  priest, 
to  offer  up  sacrifice  for  his  own  sins  as  well  as  for  those  of  the  people;  for 
all  that  was  needed  has  been  done  once  for  all  in  the  sacrifice  of  Himself. 
In  fine,  the  Priest  of  the  Law  was  a  man  full  of  infirmities :  the  Priest  of 
the  oath  is  God's  own  Son,  with  every  qualification  perfected  eternally. 

What  then  are  the  functions  of  this  greater  High  Priest;  and 
where  are  they  exercised?    not  on  earth  (viii.  1-4). 

And  now,  to  crown  our  argument,  such  is  our  High  Priest  who  fulfilled 
the  prophecy  of  Ps.  ex.  and  is  seated  at  God's  right  hand,  a  minister  of  the 
true,  ideal.  Holy  of  Holies.  What  then  are  His  functions?  They  must  be 
to  offer  "gifts  and  sacrifices";  otherwise  He  were  not  a  High  Priest.  But 
ichere  and  what  ?  Not  on  earth— for  the  place  is  occupied  by  the  Levitical 
priests. 

(1)  But  THERE  IS  A  HEAVENLY  TABERNACLE  AS  WELL  AS  AN  EARTHLY 
(5,  6). 

But  remember  two  things : 

The  Levitical  priests  serve  in  a  sanctuary  which  is  confessedly  a  "  copy 
and  shadow  "  of  a  more  august  sanctuary.  That  was  the  pattern  shewn  to 
Moses  in  the  mount.  Our  High  Priest  has  a  ministry  more  excellent  than 
theirs, 

(2)  The  Scriptures  bear  witness  to  a  New  Covenant  which  was 

TO   bring   a   more   REAL  ATONEMENT  (7-13). 

just  as  the  Covenant  which  He  brings  is  more  excellent  and  the 
promises  on  which  it  rests.  This  again  is  vouched  for  in  the  very  heart 
of  the  ancient  Scriptures.  Recall  at  length  the  great  prophecy  of  the  New 
Covenant  in  Jer.  xxxi.  What  can  it  mean  but  that  the  Old  Covenant  was 
faulty  and  a  New  Covenant  required?  The  very  term  "a  new  covenant" 
implies  that  the  first  was  already  obsolescent. 


xxxvi  PARAPHRASE 

The  ritual  of  the  Old  Covenant  was  orderly  and  beautiful: 

BUT   IT  was  limited   IN  EFFECT   (iX.    1-10). 

We  do  not  deny  that  the  first  Covenant  had  its  orderly  and  beautiful 
arrangement  of  ritual  and  sanctuary  [see  note  on  the  difficulties  of  transla- 
tion, p.  62].  It  had  its  Tabernacle  divided  into  two  chambers,  the  outer 
one,  holding  the  seven-branched  candlestick  and  the  table  of  shewbread, 
which  is  called  in  Scripture  the  Holy  Place,  and  within  it,  behind  a  second 
veil,  the  Holy  of  Holies,  with  all  its  precious  and  sacred  appanage,  the  altar 
of  incense  (before  the  veil),  the  ark  (behind  it)  with  its  historic  contents,  with 
the  Cherabim  and  the  Mercy  Seat. 

But  when  we  pass  from  sanctuary  to  ordinances  of  service,  how  narrow 
the  limitations !  After  all  this  elaborate  provision,  it  is  only  to  the  outer 
chamber  that  even  the  priests  have  access.  Into  the  inner  one  penetrates 
one  person  only,  the  High  Priest,  once  a  year,  with  awful  precautions,  with 
the  blood  of  sacrifice  offered  for  himself  as  well  as  for  the  people.  What 
was  the  meaning  which  by  such  restrictions  the  Holy  Spirit  designed  to 
impress  ?  Surely  that,  while  there  was  room  for  that  abrupt  division  of  the 
Tabernacle,  a  real  meeting-place  of  God  with  man  had  not  been  found. 
The  division  itself  was  a  parable — a  parable  to  last  as  long  as  the  dispensa- 
tion lasted.  It  was  part  and  parcel  of  a  system  of  imperfect  typical 
atonements,  such  as  could  never  cleanse  the  conscience, — bound  up  with 
ceremonial  rules  as  to  things  to  eat  and  to  drink  and  times  to  wash — 
carnal  ordinances  which  were  as  a  burden  on  men's  shoulders  till  the  time 
should  come  for  putting  things  on  a  better  footing. 

Superiority  of  the  Christian  Atonement  (11-14). 

That  time  has  now  come.  The  new  High  Priest  is  to  win  better 
blessings.  The  tabernacle  in  which  He  ministers  is  a  greater  and  more 
perfect  one — in  the  heavenly,  not  the  material  sphere.  The  blood  with 
which  He  atones  is  not  the  blood  of  dumb  cattle  but  His  own  Blood.  He 
has  entered  into  the  Holy  of  Holies  not,  like  the  Levitical  High  Priests, 
from  year  to  year,  but  once  for  all ;  and  so  the  redemption  won  for  us  is  an 
eternal  Redemption.  Ceremonial  offerings  can  remove  ceremonial  impurity 
and  restore  the  separated  to  outward  communion  with  the  consecrated 
nation — such  sacrifices  for  instance  as  those  of  the  Day  of  Atonement,  or 
the  sprinkled  ashes  of  a  burnt  heifer  in  the  case  of  those  who  have  touched 
a  dead  body  and  so  contracted  uncleanness.  So  far  you  feel  no  difiiculty. 
But  how  much  more  intelligible  is  the  effect  of  the  spiritual  sacrifice  in  the 
spiritual  sphere — the  power  of  the  Blood  of  Christ,  the  Holy,  Spotless 
Victim,  offering  Himself  willingly,  offering  Himself  in  the  power  of  a  Spirit 
Eternal  and  Divine,  to  make  clean  your  conscience,  defiled  by  actions 
contact  with  which  is  as  the  contact  with  a  corpse,  and  to  restore  you 
to  the  service  of  the  Author  of  life ! 

And  therefore  of  the  New  Covenant  which  completes  and  renders 
effective  the  Old  (15). 

And  (to  take  another  step)  it  is  because  of  this  fact — because  Christ  is 
the  Perfect  High  Priest,  able  to  offer  an  eternally  effectual  sacrifice — that 


PARAPHRASE  xxxvii 

He  is  also  the  Mediator  who  can  bring  about  that  New  Covenant  to  which 
Jeremiah  looked  forward :  so  that,  a  Death  having  now  at  last  taken  place 
of  suflBcient  value  to  redeem  the  transgressions  which  the  first  Covenant 
could  neither  prevent  nor  atone  for,  those  who  have  shared  Abraham's  call, 
in  the  past  as  well  as  in  the  present  and  future,  may  receive  what  they  have 
not  received,  the  promised  eternal  inheritance. 

The  New  Covenant  rests  on  a  Death.  This  has  raised  diffi- 
culties;   BUT  the  readers  ARE  REFERRED  TO  THREE  ANALOGIES. 

1.      In  the   EXPERIENCE   OF   COMMON   LIFE   (16,    17). 

I  say  a  Death  having  taken  place :  and  this  is  where  some  find  difficulty; 
but  let  them  think  of  three  analogies. 

(1)  In  their  experience  of  worldly  business.  A  testament  is  a  covenant — 
one  of  the  most  important  and  typical  of  covenants:  but  it  gains  all  its 
validity  from  the  death  of  the  Testator. 

[See  note  on  the  difficulties  of  the  argument.  It  seems  to  be  implied 
that  the  Christian  Covenant  is,  on  one  side,  such  a  testament,  made  effiective 
to  us  by  the  death  of  the  Testator.] 

2.    From  the  history  of  the  Old  Covenant  (18-20). 

(2)  From  the  history  of  the  Old  Covenant.  That  was  inaugurated,  as  we 
read  in  Exodus,  with  sacrifices  and  the  sprinkling  of  blood — "  the  blood  of 
the  Covenant,"  as  Moses  expressly  called  it. 

3.  From  the  principle  of  atonement  as  imaged  in  the  wholb 
Mosaic  ritual  (21-23). 

(3)  But  this  is  the  central  principle  of  atonement  as  imaged  in  the 
Levitical  ritual.  "  Without  shedding  of  blood  is  no  remission."  It  was  a 
typical  "shedding  of  blood";  as  the  Tabernacle  and  all  that  appertained  to 
it  were  types,  "  copies."  The  cleansing  of  those  things  of  which  they  were 
copies  must  need  a  Sacrifice  not  less,  but  infinitely  more  august — must 
need,  and  has  found  one:  for  the  Sacrifice  of  Christ  is  indeed  in  the 
spiritual  sphere :  the  Holy  Place  which  He  entered  is  one  "  not  made  with 
hands":  it  is  the  original,  not  the  copy:  it  is  God's  own  unveiled  Presence. 
And  it  is  in  the  timeless  sphere :  it  is  not  a  repeated  offering,  as  that  of  the 
Levitical  priests:  that  would  have  required  an  often  repeated  sacrifice  in 
times  past  and  times  future.  It  is  the  One  Sacrifice  which  crowns  the  ages 
and  once  for  all  puts  away  sin.  As  surely  as  men  die  once,  and  once  only, 
and  then  the  life  is  summed  for  judgement,  so  the  off"ering  of  Christ  for 
human  sin  was  an  oflFering  once  for  all :  when  He  appears  again  the  relation 
to  sin  will  be  altered :  it  will  not  bo  as  the  Victim  for  the  expiation  of  sin 
but  as  the  trimuphant  Deliverer  of  those  who  are  looking  for  Him. 

Summing  up  of  argument  (x.  1-18). 

See  then  fully  what  is  behind  all  this  that  we  have  been  saying.  The 
Law  was  an  "outline  of  good  things  to  come,  not  the  true  presentation 
of  the  things  themselves."  That  very  recuiTcnce  of  the  sacrifices  was  a 
confession  of  their  inefficacy.    They  were  a  "remembrance  made  of  sins 


xxxviii  PARAPHRASE 

year  by  year,"  not  a  removal  of  the  sins.  "The  blood  of  bulls  and  goats 
could  not  take  away  sin."  Here  is  the  meaning  of  the  great  words  in  Ps.  xL 
The  sacrifice  of  the  will  was  to  supersede  the  sacrifice  of  burnt  oflFerings.  It 
is  in  Christ's  perfect  obedience,  the  oflfering  of  His  Body  once  for  all,  that 
we  Christians  have  been  consecrated  to  God's  service.  Here  again  is  the 
meaning  of  some  words  not  yet  commented  on  in  the  prophecy  of  Ps.  ex., 
"Sit  down  at  my  right  hand."  The  Levitical  priests  still  stand,  oflfering 
again  and  again  the  same  ineffectual  sacrifices.  But  His  work  is  done.  He  has 
sat  down,  to  wait  till  "His  enemies  are  made  the  footstool  of  His  feet."  By 
one  oflfering  He  has  done  once  and  for  all  what  is  needed  for  those  in  eveiy 
generation  who  oflfer  themselves  to  be  consecrated.  And  once  more  here  is 
the  great  promise  in  Jer.  xxxi.  of  the  New  Covenant:  "their  sins  and 
iniquities  will  I  remember  no  more."  The  Law  is  written  in  the  heart;  the 
sins  are  forgiven.     No  more  sacrifice  is  needed. 

The  practical  conclusion  (19-25). 

So  then,  dear  brothers  (to  go  back  now  to  the  exhortation  with  which  I 
began  [i.e.  in  ch.  iv.  14],  but  keeping  in  mind  all  that  has  been  said  in  the 
meantime),  since  we  may  be  bold  not  merely  (as  we  said  then)  to  draw  near 
to  the  Sanctuary,  but,  in  virtue  of  the  "Blood  of  Jesus,"  to  enter  into  it  by 
that  way,  the  new  and  living  way  which  He  has  opened  to  us,  through  the 
rent  Veil,  that  is  to  say,  His  own  human  nature ;  and  seeing  that  the  Lord 
of  that  world  beyond  the  veil  is  the  Divine  Priest  who  has  made  atonement 
for  us,  let  us  hesitate  no  longer :  let  us  draw  near  with  full  purpose  of  heart 
and  with  perfect  confidence,  remembering  that  [as  our  Baptism  reminds  us] 
we  have  both  in  inward  meaning  and  outward  form  received  each  of  us  the 
consecration  as  of  a  High  Priest.  We  have  confessed  publicly  oui-  hope: 
let  us  cling  to  that  confession  and  hold  it  firmly :  for  God,  on  His  side,  may 
be  trusted  to  keep  His  promise.  Let  us  set  our  whole  thoughts  not  on  our- 
selves but  on  one  another,  that  so  we  may  give  a  fresh  edge  to  our  mutual 
love  and  generous  action.  Above  all  do  not,  as  some  have  done,  withdraw 
from  the  meetings  of  the  Christian  body.  We  need  to  stand  together  more 
closely  and  to  encourage  one  another  more  persistently  as  the  great  day  of 
trial  and  of  triumph  seems  to  be  coming  nearer. 

Ground  of  his  appeal.    (1)  The  dangers  of  apostasy  (26-30). 

I  plead  with  you  thus  because  the  danger  is  great.  If,  after  fully  appre- 
hending the  Truth,  we  are  found  when  that  day  comes  wilfully  and 
persistently  apostatizing  from  it,  what  is  held  in  reserve  for  us  is  not 
some  greater  and  finally  eflfective  Sacrifice  for  sin ;  but  the  terrible 
anticipation  of  judgement,  the  "jealousy  of  fire  to  devour  adversaries," 
of  which  the  prophets  spoke.  Remember  the  punishment  of  apostasy 
under  the  Mosaic  Law — "death  without  mercy,"  if  it  were  suflSciently 
proved.  Must  not  the  punishment  of  apostasy  be  still  sorer  for  one  who 
treats  with  ingratitude  and  contumely  the  Father's  gift  of  His  own  Son,  the 
Blood  of  the  Son  of  God  which  sealed  the  consecrating  Covenant,  the  free 
and  gracious  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit  ?    We  know  what  Scripture  tells  us  of 


PARAPHRASE  xxxix 

the  God  "to  whom  vengeance  belongs" ;  and  how  to  be  God's  people  means 
to  be  subject  to  His  judgement.  I  used  just  now  the  word  "terrible."  Is 
it  too  strong  to  describe  the  danger  of  falling  as  an  enemy  into  His  hands  ? 

(2)  Memory  of  formee  steadfastness  (26-30). 

To  turn  to  thoughts  of  encouragement:  remember  how  in  early  days, 
after  you  became  Christians,  you  boi-e  yourselves  in  the  face  of  the  world, 
when  you  had  to  meet  insult  and  persecution  ;  how  on  one  special  occasion 
you  ranged  yourselves  on  the  side  of  the  persecuted,  proclaimed  your 
sympathy  for  the  prisoners,  joyfully  exposed  your  own  property  to  pillage, 
knowing  that  your  souls  were  a  better  and  more  lasting  possession  to  make 
your  own  than  anything  external.  Do  not  now,  in  a  moment  of  impulse, 
throw  away  that  outspoken  boldness,  to  which  such  great  reward  is 
promised.  All  you  need  is  patience.  Do  God's  will,  and  the  promise  stands 
sure,  the  very  promise  of  Habakkuk,  "yet  a  little  while  and  He  that  is  to 
come  will  come."  God's  "righteous  ones"  shall  "live  by  faith."  To  "flinch 
from  the  trial"  is  to  forfeit  all  His  favour.  We  range  ourselves,  surely,  not 
with  those  who  "flinch"  and  incur  niin,  but  with  those  who  have  "faith,"  and 
so  in  patience  win  their  souls. 

The  historic  glory  of  faith  (xi.  and  xii.  to  v.  4). 

The  meaning  op  faith  (xi.  1). 

Faith !  That  is  what  is  needed :  and  when  the  prophet  speaks,  or  when 
we  speak,  of  faith,  let  us  remember  fully  what  that  means.  Faith  assures, 
it  offers  proof:  but  it  is  of  things  hoped  for,  things  beyond  sight.  It  is 
faith  in  this  sense,  faith  beyond  sight,  which  is  the  historic  glory  of  our  great 
forefathers. 

Faith  as  the  foundation  of  religion  (3-6). 

It  is  what  the  first  words  of  Scripture  call  for.  To  believe  in  a  Creator 
means  that  behind  what  is  seen  is  what  is  not  seen.  It  is  what  made  Abel's 
sacrifice  acceptable,  which  caused  him,  even  in  death,  to  be  recognized  as  an 
undying  witness  for  righteousness.  It  was  in  Enoch  the  secret  of  that 
special  favour  of  God  which  was  expressed  in  his  translation.  He  believed 
in  two  things  which  are  beyond  sight:  God's  existence,  and  His  moral 
government. 

Faith  in  God's  threatenings  and  promises  (7-12). 
(Noah — A  braham — Sarah.  ) 

It  is  what  Noah  shewed  when  he  reverently  accepted  God's  warning,  and 
though  the  flood  was  still  in  the  unseen  future  set  to  building  an  ark  for 
himself  and  his  family.  In  so  doing  he  passed  sentence  on  the  unbelieving 
world  and  ranged  himself  in  the  succession  of  those  who  do  right  because 
they  follow  faith. 

It  is  what  Abraham  shewed  when  he  obeyed  God's  call  and  left  his  home 
without  knowing  whither  he  was  going,  when  he  made  his  only  home  in  tents, 
he  and  two  generations  after  him,  in  the  land  promised  to  him,  but  with  no 


xl  PARAPHRASE 

sign  of  its  belonging  to  him.     He  was  looking  forward  to  the  building  of  a 
City  of  God. 

So  with  Sarah,  too.  She  believed  God's  promise  to  Abraham  and  herself, 
in  spite  of  all  the  improbability,  and  her  faith  was  justified  by  their  becoming 
the  progenitors  of  a  race  like  the  stars  or  sand  for  multitude. 

Patience  of  the  patriarchs  (13-16). 

Faith  was  the  secret  of  the  hfe  of  all  these.  They  did  not  receive  the 
promised  good  things,  but  saw  them  as  sailors  sight  land  in  the  oflBng  and 
greet  it  afar.  "Strangers  and  pilgrims" — those  are  the  titles  which  they 
gave  themselves.  That  is  the  language  of  men  who  are  on  their  way  to 
some  other  country.  "What  was  that  country  ?  Not  the  one  from  which  they 
came :  for  they  might  have  gone  back  to  it.  It  was  a  "better  land,"  that  is, 
it  was  not  an  earthly  but  a  heavenly  land.  And  this  is  why  God  suffered 
Himself  to  be  identified  throughout  our  history  as  their  God  [i.e.  as  "the 
God  of  Abraham,  of  Isaac,  and  of  Jacob"] :  for  their  faith  was  justified.  That 
"City  of  God"  of  their  dreams  was  a  real  one. 

Faith  that  faces  sacrifice  (Abraham.     17-19). 
It  was  through  faith,  again,  that  Abraham  faced  his  great  trial  and  was 
ready  with  his  own  hands  to  sacrifice  the  son  of  promise.     His  faith  went 
beyond  the  visible  world.     He  believed  that  God  could  give  him  back  his 
son,  even  after  death :  and  that  was,  in  a  parable,  what  he  was  taught. 

Faith  that  looks  far  forward  (Isaac — Jacob — Joseph.    20-22). 

There  was  the  same  characteristic  of  reliance  on  the  unseen  future  in 
Isaac's  faith  when  he  gave  the  blessing  to  his  two  sons ;  in  Jacob's  when  he 
blessed  Bphraim  and  Manasseh  and  charged  Joseph  about  his  burial;  in 
Joseph's  when  he  looked  forward  to  the  Exodus  and  desired  to  have  his 
bones  laid  in  the  Promised  Land. 

Faith  in  the  history  of  Moses  and  the  Exodus  (23-31). 

Take  again  the  history  of  Moses  and  the  Exodus.  The  parents  of  Moses 
shewed  their  faith  when  they  ignored  the  king's  commandment  and  saved  his 
life  at  his  birth.  So  he  did  himself  afterwards  when  he  refused  to  be  adopted 
by  Pharaoh's  daughter.  The  visible  choice  was  between  the  pleasures  and 
riches  to  be  won  by  apostasy  and  the  hardships  and  reproaches  which  were 
the  portion  of  God's  people  and  those  who  shared  the  Messianic  hope.  But 
he  looked  past  these  visible  things  to  the  invisible  reward  beyond.  It  was 
in  the  sight  of  Him  who  is  invisible  that  he  found  courage  to  defy  the  king 
and  turn  his  back  on  Egypt. 

It  was  in  reliance  on  unseen  forces — a  reliance  which  was  justified  by  the 
event — that  they  kept  the  Passover  and  sprinkled  the  blood  on  the  door- 
posts, and  so  escaped  the  destroying  angel ;  that  they  passed  safely  through 
the  Red  Sea^  though  the  Egyptians,  trying  to  do  the  same,  were  drowned. 

It  was  an  unseen  touch  that  brought  down  the  walls  of  Jericho  after  the 
people  had  patiently  marched  round  them  for  seven  days.  It  was  to  unseen 
power  that  Rahab  trusted  when  she  sided  with  the  defenceless  spies. 


PARAPHRASE  xli 

Faith  in  all  Jewish  history  (32-46). 

And  so  it  has  been  all  through  the  sacred  history,  from  the  Judges  to  the 
Maccabees.  Judges,  Kings,  and  Prophets — the  Judges  who  overthrew  kings, 
the  Kings  who  did  that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  the  Prophets 
who  saw  visions  that  canie  true — all  rested  on  faith  in  the  unseen.  That 
was  the  secret  of  the  gi'eat  deliverances  of  the  Captivity,  of  the  Feast  of 
Puriin,  of  the  Maccabees.  Faithful  women  received  their  dead  raised  to 
life  again.  But  faith  was  illustrated  yet  more  gloriously  in  the  heroic 
mother  [of  2  Mace,  vii.]  who  encouraged  her  sons  to  suffer  martyrdom  in 
the  hope  of  a  "better  resurrection,"  of  a  more  distant  and  invisible,  but 
yet  a  greater,  reward. 

So  it  was  with  all  the  Martyrs  and  Confessors  of  our  history :  it  was  faith, 
to  the  end,  in  the  unseen.  They  suffered  every  extremity  and  indignity, 
though  they  were  worth  all  the  world  besides.  And  yet  in  spite  of  the 
witness  borne  in  Scripture  to  their  sufferings  and  their  faith,  they  had  to 
wait  still ;  because  God  had  in  view  something  better  in  which  we  were 
to  be  concerned,  and  meant  them  to  share  with  us  the  full  and  final  reward 
of  their  faith. 

Faith  in  our  own  lives  and  in  that  op  the  Lord  Jesus  (xil  1,  2). 

What  has  been  the  purpose  of  this  long  catalogue  ?  Is  not  the  imperative 
conclusion  from  it  that,  seeing  that  wherever  we  turn  our  eyes  the  horizon 
is  closed  in  with  a  company  of  those  who  testify  to  the  greatness  and  the 
reward  of  faith,  we  too  should  get  rid  of  every  encumbrance,  strip 
ourselves  of  sin's  entanglements,  and,  like  them,  vdth  patience  run  the 
race  proposed  to  us,  fixing  our  eyes  on  one  sight,  on  Jesus,  the  great 
Leader,  the  perfect  example  of  Faith,  who,  for  the  joy  which  was 
proposed  to  Him,  endured  the  Cross,  meeting  shame  with  contempt,  and 
took  and  holds  the  supreme  place  by  the  right  hand  of  God's  throne  ? 

Suffering,  as  discipline  (3-11). 

Yes — that  you  lose  not  patience  and  courage  in  the  struggle,  compare 
what  you  have  to  bear  with  what  He  had  to  bear  [as  a  second  Moses]  from 
the  opposition  of  men  who  were  their  own  worst  enemies.  Compare  the 
way  in  which  you  bear  it  with  the  way  in  which  He  bore  it.  You  were  not 
called  [as  He  was]  to  resist  unto  blood  in  your  battle  with  the  temptation 
to  apostasy.  And  you  had  forgotten  [as  He  did  not]  the  words  of  fatherly 
exhortation  in  which  the  writer  of  the  Book  of  Proverbs  argues  with  such 
as  you.  He  calls  you  "sons."  He  bids  you  not  ignore  God's  chastening 
or  be  put  out  of  heart  by  His  discipline.  Chastening  is  a  proof  of  love 
— even  painful  discipline— an  evidence  that  you  are  recognized  as  sons 
What  you  bear  patiently  you  are  bearing  as  discipline.  You  are  being 
treated  as  sons.  To  be  free  from  chastening  would  argue  that  you  were 
no  true  sons.  We  took  chastening  from  an  earthly  father's  hands  and  gave 
him  reverence.  Shall  we  not  submit  to  the  Father  of  our  spirits,  who 
would  fit  us  for  eternal  life  ?  The  human  chastisement  was  limited  in  its 
scope  by  the  few  days  of  mortal  life  and  in  its  effect  by  the  weakness 


xlii  PARAPHRASE 

of  human  judgement.  God's  chastisement  is  for  our  certain  profit, 
that  we  may  become  partakers  of  His  holiness.  I  do  not  say  that 
chastening  at  the  time  is  pleasant.  All  chastening  is  painful.  But  its 
issue  to  those  who  have  let  themselves  be  trained  by  it  is  peace  of  soul 
and  perfected  character. 

Warnings  against  moral  inconsistencies  (12-17). 

Wherefore  [seeing  that  your  present  distress  is  only  a  sign  of  God's 
Fatherly  love  and  has  happy  purposes]  let  me  take  up  the  voices  of  your 
own  Scripture,  of  Prophet  and  Sage  (Isaiah  xxxv.  3 ;  Prov.  iv.  26,  27)  which 
call  you  to  hearten  one  another  for  your  journey  to  the  Holy  Land,  and  bid 
you  clear  one  another's  path  from  obstacles  and  stumblingblocks.  Set 
before  yourselves  as  an  aim  peace  with  all  men,  and  growth  in  that  holiness 
which  is  necessary  to  those  who  would  "see  God."  Beware  lest  there  be 
even  one  among  you  who  lags  behind  in  the  progi-ess  which  God's  Grace  is 
meant  to  ensure  ;  lest  [as  your  forefathers  were  warned  in  Deut.  xxix.  18] 
there  be  any  poisonous  root  left  in  the  soil  which  may  spring  up  and  give 
you  trouble  and  infect  the  whole  Church — (to  drop  figures)  lest  there 
be  among  you  an  immoral  person,  or  an  irreligious,  like  Esau,  who  for  a 
mess  of  pottage  sold  his  rights  as  firstborn  with  all  their  sacred  associa- 
tions. You  know  his  story ;  how  when,  afterwards,  he  would  have  had  the 
firstborn's  blessing,  though  he  begged  for  it  earnestly  with  tears,  he  found 
it  too  late  then  to  change  his  choice. 

Contrast  between  the  Old  Covenant  and  the  New  (18-29). 

Remember  once  more  the  contrast  between  the  circumstances  of  the 
New  Covenant,  which  you  would  be  throwing  away,  and  those  of  the  Old 
Covenant  which  was  ofiered  to  our  forefathers.  It  is  the  contrast  between 
Mt  Sinai  and  Mt  Zion:  in  the  one  case,  below,  a  groping  in  darkness — 
above,  the  fire,  the  pealing  trumpet,  the  terrible  voice  of  warning  which  the 
people  shrank  from  hearing,  by  which  even  Moses  was  awestruck.  In  the 
other  case,  heaven  brought  to  earth,  earth  raised  to  heaven,  the  meeting-place 
of  angels  and  of  the  heirs  of  God,  the  happy  City  where  God  is  Judge,  where 
good  men  are  perfected,  above  all,  where  Jesus  is,  whose  Blood  has  conse- 
crated the  Covenant,  the  Blood  of  a  martyi',  the  last  of  the  series  as  Abel 
was  the  first,  but  the  Blood  which  cries  not  for  vengeance  but  for  peace. 
Take  care  not  to  repeat  your  forefathers'  act  in  shrinking  from  listening  to 
the  Voice  that  is  speaking  to  you.  For  if  they  escaped  not  the  consequences 
of  refusing  to  hear  God's  warnings  when  given  on  earth,  how  shall  we  escape 
if  we  persist,  who  are  turning  our  backs  on  Him  Who  warns  us  from  heaven  ? 
It  is  He  whose  Voice  then  made  the  earth  quake.  But  what  is  happening 
now  is  what  was  promised  by  Haggai,  that  He  would  "shake  yet  once  not 
earth  only  but  heaven."  Those  words  "yet  once"  imply  finahty,  an  end  of 
things  that  can  be  shaken,  that  is,  of  things  which  belong  to  the  material 
creation,  in  order  that  things  of  the  spiritual  order  may  remain.  That  is 
the  new  Spiritual  Dispensation  [Daniel's  Fifth,  the  Messianic,  Kingdom] 
which  no  shock  can  affect  and  which  God  has  given  to  us. 


PARAPHRASE  xliii 

Let  us  then  have  the  thankful  hearts  >vith  which  we  may  be  able  to  offer 
to  God  the  service  which  is  pleasing  in  His  sight,  with  a  godly  and  even  an 
awful  fear,  for  God  is,  even  to  us  [as  was  said  to  our  ancestors  in  Deut.  iv. 
24]  a  "consuming  fire,"  a  jealous  God. 

POSTSCKIPT  (xiii.). 
Moral  exhortations  (1-6). 

Suffer  no  cooling  of  your  present  good  affections,  your  sense  of  Christian 
brotherhood,  your  loving  hospitality  to  strangers  (our  history  tells  us  how 
men  have  sometimes  found  that  in  a  wayfarer  they  had  entertained  an 
angel).  Shew  fellow-feeling,  real  and  human,  to  those  who  are  in  bonds  or 
who  are  otherwise  suffering  ill-treatment. 

Hold  in  all  honour  faithful  wedlock :  all  breaches  of  the  law  of  chastity, 
whatever  men  think  of  them,  God  will  punish.  Keep  your  life  free  from  the 
passion  for  money:  the  remedy  for  it  is  contentment:  for  we  have  God's 
o?vn  word,  "I  will  never  leave  thee,  nor  forsake  thee"  (Deut.  xxxi.  6).  So 
that  we  repeat  \vith  confidence  the  Psalmist's  words  (Ps.  cxviii.  6),  "the  Lord 
is  my  helper:  I  will  not  fear  what  man  can  do  unto  me." 

Consistency  of  doctrine  (7-9). 

Call  to  mind  your  old  leaders  to  whom  you  owe  your  conversion.  Study 
attentively  the  issue  to  which  their  mode  of  life  brought  them,  and  imitate 
their  faith.  The  Christian  Faith  centres  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  He  changes 
not.  Do  not  be  carried  out  of  your  straight  course  by  a  variety  of  incon- 
sistent teachings.  Consistency  and  constancy — these  are  what  your  leaders 
shewed  and  what  you  need.  And  they  are  the  result  of  God's  grace,  not  of 
rules  about  things  to  eat — a  system  which  has  been  tried  and  has  proved  so 
profitless. 

"We  have  an  altar"  (10-14). 

Do  not  be  frightened  by  the  taunt  that  we  "have  no  altar."  We  have 
one — one  all  oxir  ovm — in  which  the  priests  of  the  Old  Dispensation  have  no 
part  or  lot.  This  was  foreshadowed  in  the  typical  sacrifice  of  the  Day  of 
Atonement,  of  which  the  Christian  sacrifice  is  the  fulfilment.  The  sin- 
offering  was  not  to  be  eaten  by  the  priests,  but  carried  outside  the  camp 
and  burnt.  Even  so  Jesus,  in  the  gi-eat  Atoning  Sacrifice,  suffered  "without 
the  gate,"  as  an  outcast  from  priest  and  people.  Let  us  have  the  heart  to 
face  what  He  faced,  and  take  our  place  by  His  side. 

Do  you  say  that  this  is  a  call  to  expatriate  yourselves?  It  is  just  the  call 
that  [as  was  said  just  now,  ch.  xi.  13  f  ]  our  great  forefathers,  the  patriarchs, 
heard  and  answered,  to  forgo  a  present  "city"  for  one  to  come. 

The  sacrifices  of  Christians  (15-17). 

In  virtue  then  of  the  Great  Sacrifice  let  us  offer  now  a  sacrifice  of  our 
own ;  not  the  produce  of  land  or  flock,  but  the  continual  offering  of  grateful 
hearts  and  of  lips  that  acknowledge  thankfully  His  Revelation  of  Himself. 
There  is  another  sacrifice  which  God  values,  namely  that  of  kind  actions  and 


xliv  PARAPHRASE 

the  unselfish  use  of  possessions.  Obey  your  spiritual  leaders,  submitting 
your  own  wills :  for  they  are  like  faithful  watchmen  keeping  guard  over 
your  souls,  as  those  who  have  to  account  for  them  to  God.  See  that 
they  may  be  able  to  render  that  account  with  joy  and  not  with  lamentation ; 
for  that  would  be  no  better  for  you  than  for  them. 

"Pray  for  us"  (18,  19). 

Pray  for  me  and  for  those  who  join  in  this  letter.  We  would  fain  believe 
that  (whatever  you  hear  or  judge  of  us)  we  have  a  clear  conscience  and  a 
hearty  desire  to  do  what  is  right  in  your  eyes  as  well  as  our  own.  I  ask  your 
special  prayers  for  myself  that  I  may  be  restored  to  you.  ^s^ 

The  writer's  prayer  (20,  21). 

And  as  you  pray  for  me,  so  will  I  pray  for  you ;  that  God — the  God  Who 
loves  peace  and  makes  peace — the  God  Who  has  done  for  you  what  He  did 
for  your  forefathers.  Who  has  brought  again  your  Greater  Moses  from  waters 
deeper  than  the  Red  Sea,  brought  Him  back  from  death  in  the  power  of 
the  Blood  which  consecrates  an  Eternal  Covenant — even  Jesus  our  Lord, 
Human  at  once  and  Divine — that  He  will  perfect  you  in  all  that  is  good,  to 
the  end  that  you  may  work  His  will,  while  He  works  in  you  that  which  is 
pleasing  in  His  sight.  That  gi-ace  I  look  for,  and  that  prayer  I  offer,  through 
Jesus  Christ  the  ever  glorious.     Amen. 

Second  postscript.    Last  words  and  salutations  (22-end). 

Let  me  finish  my  exhortation  by  exhorting  you  to  have  patience  with  it. 
It  is  not  much  to  read  on  such  a  subject. 

You  should  know  that  our  dear  brother  Timothy  has  been  set  at  liberty. 
If  he  comes  here  at  all  speedily,  I  shall  accompany  him  to  you. 

Greet  for  me  those  in  authority  in  your  Church  and  all  its  members. 
"They  of  Italy"  send  you  their  greeting. 

"The  Grace"  be  with  you  all.    Amen. 


HEBREWS 

I.   1-4.    The  two  Revelations. 

I.     1  God,  having  of  old  time  spoken  unto  the  fathers  in  the 

2  prophets  by  divers  portions  and  in  divers  manners,  hath 
at  the  end  of  these  days  spoken  unto  us  in  ^his  Son,  whom 
he  appointed  heir  of  all  things,  through  whom  also  he 
made  the  ^worlds: 

^  Gr.  a  son.  '  Gr.  ages. 

The  Son  as  the  Revealer. 

3  who  being  the  eflFiilgence  of  his  glory  and  the  very  image 
of  his  substance,  and  upholding  all  things  by  the  word  of 
his  power,  when  he  had  made  purification  of  sins,  sat  down 

4  on  the  right  hand  of  the  Majesty  on  high,  having  become 
by  so  much  better  than  the  angels,  as  he  hath  inherited  a 
more  excellent  name  than  they. 

General  Note  on  I.  1-4. 

The  Epistle  begins  abruptly,  not  with  the  personal  address  usual  in  a 
letter,  but  rather  as  a  treatise  or  piece  of  oratory,  with  a  statement  of  the 
subject,  thrown  into  the  rhetorical  form  which  arrests  attention,  embodying 
the  main  theses  which  are  to  be  maintained,  indicating  the  nature  and 
illustrating  the  spirit  of  the  argument,  anticipating  the  phrases  which  are 
to  be  in  our  ears  throughout  it. 

The  subject  of  argument  in  the  Epistle  is  to  be  a  comparison  of  the  Old 
and  the  New  Dispensations  with  the  purpose  of  shewing  that,  while  the  New  is 
the  natural  development  and  completion  of  the  Old,  it  surpasses  it,  as  the 
substance  is  more  than  the  shadow.  In  each  case  the  Dispensation  is  to  be 
viewed  both  as  a  Revelation  of  truth  and  as  a  scheme  for  meeting  man's 
desire  for  reconcihation  with  God.  The  prefatory  sentence  touches  all  these 
points. 

In  both  aspects  the  relation  of  the  two  Dispensations  is  one  at  once  of 
continuity  and  of  contrast. 

H.  1 


2  HEBREWS  [i.  1-4 

1.  Of  continuity.  This  sense  is  conveyed  in  the  form  as  well  as  the 
substance  of  the  sentence.  We  are  to  notice  the  identity  mm.  1,  2  of  the 
subject  and  of  the  verb  ("God... having  spoken... hath  spoken").  The  point 
is  that  both  Revelations  are  utterances  of  God :  their  diflFerence  is  primaiily 
of  order  and  time  ;  one  introducing  and  going  along  with,  the  other  ending, 
the  same  era.  We  are  to  notice  that  (as  it  is  stated  of  the  second,  and 
assumed  of  the  first)  they  are  both  concerned  vdth  the  "purification  of 
sins."  We  are  to  notice  the  appeal  to  common  ground  between  the  writer 
and  his  readers— "unto  the  [or,  our\  fathers  in  the  prophets"  (cp.  the  use 
of  the  phrase  "the  God  of  our  fathers"  in  Acts  iii.  13,  v.  30,  xxii.  14 — all  of 
them  cases  where  it  was  desired  to  emphasize  the  continuity  of  the  old  and 
new).  Even  the  description  "by  divers  portions  and  in  divers  manners," 
although  its  primary  purpose  (as  will  be  pointed  out)  is  to  indicate  a  con- 
trast, carried  also  in  itself  a  suggestion  of  continuity,  as  though  the 
Christian  Revelation  illustrated  a  character  already  impressed  upon  God's 
utterances,  being  only  one  more  "  portion  "  and  in  one  more  "  manner." 

2.  Of  contrast.  This,  in  its  detail,  will  be  the  substance  of  the  Epistle : 
but  the  difierence  is  indicated  at  once,  and  in  two  points. 

(a)  Tlie  general  character  of  the  Revelation.  The  older  Revelation  is 
described  as  "  by  divers  portions  and  in  divers  manners."  The  two  balanced 
and  sonorous  adverbs  {■n-oXvfj.epios  koL  TroXvTporras)  which  are  so  translated, 
standing  as  they  do  as  the  first  words  in  the  sentence  and  in  the  Epistle, 
have  an  emphasis  which  translation  cannot  reproduce.  They  have  no 
directly  correspondent  clause  in  the  description  of  the  new  Revelation  : 
but  this  is  a  usual  method  of  Greek  rhetoric,  which  expresses  contrast  by 
order  and  emphasis  and  significant  omission  as  much  as  by  definite  state- 
ment. The  insistence  upon  the  "  fragmentary  and  multiform  "  character  of 
the  one  Revelation  implies,  without  words,  that  the  other  is  complete  and 
single. 

(6)  77ie  dignity  and  competence  of  the  Intermediaries.  In  this  case 
the  contrasting  description  is  appended  only  to  the  words  which  characterize 
the  second  Revelation.  "The  prophets"  stands  without  qualification  to 
designate  the  Intermediaries  of  the  first,  while  phrases  are  accumulated  to 
indicate  the  surpassing  greatness  of  the  Intermediary  of  the  second,  no 
"mouthpiece"  or  "messenger,"  but  the  very  Image  of  Him  Who  is  to  be 
revealed. 

The  whole  balance  of  this  opening  sentence  prepares  us  for  a  chief 
feature  of  the  Epistle,  viz.  the  presentation  of  the  Incarnate  Son  as 
occupying  the  entire  horizon  of  religious  thought  and  aspiration,  as  in 
His  single  Person  perfecting  all  Revelation,  fulfilling  all  tj'pes,  satisfying 
all  craving  of  the  human  spirit  for  reconciliation  with  the  Divine. 

I.  1.     by  divers  portions  and  in  of  the  Old  Testament,  fragmentary, 

divers  manners.     The   bearing   of  occasional,  progressive,  "here  a  little 

these  words  in  their  context   has  and  there  a  little,"  delivered  in  many 

been  explained.    It  may  be  added  forms,    in    narrative.   Law,    Psalm, 

that  their  propriety  is  obvious  as  a  Prophecy,   typical    institution    and 

general  description  of  the  Revelation  ceremony.    It  is  clear,  by  the  way, 


I.  1-4] 


HEBREWS 


what  large  room  a  Revelation  which 
can  be  so  described  leaves  for  after- 
criticism,  to  trace  the  order,  to  piece 
together  the  portions,  to  make  clear 
the  utterance. 

2.  the  end  of  these  days.  "  These 
days"  (this  era)  means  the  days  of 
the  Old  Dispensation,  as  opposed  to 
"  the  age  to  come  "  of  ch.  vi.  5,  "  the 
days  [that]  come"  of  viii.  8,  i.e.  to  the 
new  Messianic  Dispensation.  The 
phrase  has  special  appropriateness 
if  we  are  right  in  supposing  the 
Epistle  to  have  been  written  at  the 
moment  when  in  the  downfall,  close 
at  hand,  of  the  Jewish  polity,  the 
ancient  world  was  visibly  passing 
away.  But,  as  has  been  suggested, 
the  designation  of  the  time  has  a 
special  purpose,  (1)  as  linking  to- 
gether the  two  Revelations,  (2)  as 
indicating  that  the  second  is  the 
completion  of  the  first. 

his  Son.  As  the  italics  and  the 
marginal  note  in  R.V.  indicate,  there 
is  no  possessive  pronoun  nor  de- 
finite article  in  the  Greek,  and 
the  literal  translation  therefore  is 
*'  a  Son."  ("  A  son  "  in  English  would 
no  more  necessarily  imply  that  there 
was  more  than  one  son,  than  "a 
Shakespeare"  would  imply  that  there 
were  two  Shakespeares.)  In  other 
words,  it  is  not,  like  "  the  prophets," 
a  merely  personal  designation,  but  a 
description,  "  such  an  One  as  a  Son." 
It  not  only  names  the  Person,  but 
suggests  the  ground  of  His  tran- 
scendent dignity  and  power  of  re- 
vealing. See  ch.  vii.  28,  where  R.V. 
has  rightly  "  a  Son."  Cp.  also  note 
on  ix.  14,  "the  [an]  eternal  Spirit." 

he  appointed  heir.  When  ?  Ap- 
parently, in  the  scheme  of  Creation. 
As  St  Paul  says  (Col.  i.  16),  "all 
things  have  been  created  through 
him  and  unto  him."  It  is  possible, 
as  the  writer  has  already  in  mind 


Psalms  ii.  and  ex.,  that  the  thought 
of  universal  heirship  is  coloured  by 
a  special  reference  to  the  world  of 
man:  "Thou  art  my  Son... I  will 
give  thee  the  nations  for  thine  in- 
heritance and  the  uttermost  parts  of 
the  earth  for  thy  possession,"  Ps.  ii. 
7,  8  ;  "  Until  I  make  thine  enemies 
thy  footstool,"  Ps.  ex.  1. 

the  worlds.  Gr.  "  ages."  The  only 
parallel  to  this  use  is  ch.  xi.  3,  where 
again  the  word  is  used  of  Creation  : 
"  that  the  worlds  [ages]  were  framed." 
It  seems  to  mean  the  universe  of 
things  in  all  its  successive  phases — 
things  past,  present,  and  to  come. 

3.  who  being,  &c.  This  clause 
not  only  expresses  His  ineffable 
dignity,  but  also  amplifies  what  has 
been  said  of  Him  as  the  Intermediary 
of  Revelation.  He  is  the  Supreme 
Revealer,  because  He  not  merely 
brings  a  message,  but  reflects  and 
makes  visible  the  Person. 

being.  Contrast  in  v.  4,  "having 
become."  There  is  the  emphatic  dis- 
tinction drawTi,  in  accordance  with 
the  usage  of  Greek  philosophy,  be- 
tween the  two  verbs"to  be"(eri/at)and 
"  to  become  "  (yiypeadai) ;  the  first  of 
His  essential,  changeless  being  ;  the 
second  of  His  entry  into  the  world  of 
"  becoming,"of  existence  that  changes 
and  develops.  God  alone  "  is,"  Exod. 
iii.  14,  John  viii.  58. 

effulgence  {anavyaa-yia).  Literally 
of  the  rays  of  light  streaming  from 
something. 

very  image  {xapaKTrjp).  Literally 
of  the  impression  of  a  graven  seal. 

The  two  expressions  belong  to  the 
same  order  of  phrases  as  "  the  image 
(fiKCDi/ — likeness)  of  the  Invisible 
God"  of  Col.  i.  15  (cp.  2  Cor.  iv.  4, 
and  our  Lord's  o^vn  words,  John  xiv. 
9,  "he  that  hath  seen  me  hath  seen  the 
Father")  andindeed as"theWord"of 
St  John.  They  are  phrases  which  are 

1—2 


HEBREWS 


[1. 1-4 


used,  though  rather  rhetorically,  by 
Philo,  the  Jewish  philosopher,  and  by 
the  writer  of  the  Book  of  Wisdom, 
of  the  relation  of  the  human  spirit 
to  the  Divine,  or  of  abstract  qualities 
(as  of  Wisdom,  Wisd.  vii.  26,  R.V., 
"  she  is  an  eflfulgence  from  everlast- 
lasting  light").  The  novelty  in  the 
New  Testament  lies  in  their  more 
serious  and  definite  purpose  and  in 
their  application  to  a  Divine  Person. 
Each  phrase,  with  its  own  figure,  is 
striving  to  convey  the  idea  of  a 
Being  in  Whom  the  Invisible,  Unin- 
telligible, becomes  to  hvmian  eyes 
and  mind  intelligible,  visible :  but 
each  makes  its  own  addition  to  the 
thought :  "  efi'ulgence  "  speaks  of  the 
illuminating  power  of  the  Revelation; 
as  the  Church  worded  it,  "  Light  of 
Light"  (cp.  1  John  i.  5,  "God  is 
light" ;  John  ix.  5,  "  I  am  the  light  of 
the  world  ") :  "  [stamped]  image,"  of 
its  completeness,  exactness,  as  the 
impress  reproduces  every  line  and 
fold  of  the  graven  seal ;  "  very  God 
of  very  God." 

substance,  a  literal  rendering  of 
the  Greek  word,  vnoa-Taa-n,  "that 
which  stands  beneath."  It  had  ac- 
quired the  meaning  of  "  real,  essen- 
tial nature  " ;  that  which  a  thing  is 
at  bottom,  as  opposed  to  superficial 
appearance. 

upholding.  The  Greek  participle 
conveys  the  idea  of  movement  as 
well  as  support ;  "  carrying  "  on  their 
way.  It  does  not  suggest  the  picture 
of  a  dead  weight,  as  on  the  shoulders 
of  an  Atlas ;  but  of  a  universe  de- 
pendent on  Him  for  its  life  and 
movement. 

the  word  of  his  power,  i.e.  the 


manifestation  of  His  almighty  will. 
Cp.  ch.  li.  3,  "the  worlds  were  framed 
by  the  word  of  God."  The  reference 
is  to  the  phrase  of  Gen.  i.,  "  God  said. 
Let  there  be  light,  &c.,"  and  to  its 
echo  in  the  Psalms,  as  xxxiii.  9, 
"He  spake,  and  it  was  done,  &c." 
What  is  said  in  the  O.T.  of  God  is 
affirmed  here  of  the  Divine  Son. 

when  he  had  made.  In  these 
words  we  pass  from  the  view  of  what 
Christ  is  in  His  Eternal  Being,  and 
what  He  is  in  relation  to  the  whole 
universe  of  created  things,  to  His 
Incarnation,  its  purpose  and  its 
issue.  The  words  in  A.  V.,  "  by  him- 
self," have  little  MS  authority  and 
are  omitted  in  R.V.  Although,  when 
the  doctrine  of  Christ's  sacrifice  has 
been  developed,  they  would  be  ap- 
propriate, they  would  at  present  be 
premature :  see  in  ch.  x.,  general 
note  on  vv.  19-25,  and  cp.  also  the 
note  on  "when  he  offered  up  him- 
self," ch.  vii.  27. 

4.  having  become.  This  (see  above, 
note  on  v.  3)  is  in  direct  contrast  with 
the  "being"  of  v.  3.  We  are  speaking 
now  of  the  exaltation  which  followed 
the  Incarnation. 

inherited.  The  "Name"  is  pri- 
marily that  of  "Son";  but  also,  as 
the  quotations  which  follow  shew,  it 
covers  the  language  generally  used 
in  Scripture  of  the  coming  Messiah. 
He  "has  inherited"  this  Name,  i.e. 
in  coming  into  the  world  He  has  re- 
ceived it  as  His  Name  by  birthright: 
and  (the  writer  would  say)  in  that 
Name,  witnessed  to  by  prophecy,  we 
have  the  measure  of  the  superiority 
of  the  Incarnate  Christ  to  the  angels 
— the  "Messengers." 


Additional  Note  on  the  Comparison  with  the  Angels.    (I.  4.) 

The  general  purpose  was  to  express  the  surpassing  dignity  of  the 
ascended  Saviour ;  and  this  might  have  been  done  in  general  terms,  as  by 
St  Paul  in  Eph.  i.  20,  21  (where  the  same  words  of  Ps.  ex.  are  in  view) : 


I.  1-4]  HEBREWS  5 

"[God]  made  him  sit  at  his  right  hand  in  the  heavenly  places,  far  above  all 
riile  and  authority  and  power  and  dominion  and  every  name  that  is  named 
not  only  in  this  world  but  also  in  that  which  is  to  come."  The  angels  are 
named  here  as  representing  the  highest  of  created  beings.  But  it  would 
seem  that  the  special  comparison  has  a  definite  purpose,  for  it  is  made  the 
text  of  a  long  passage  of  explanation  and  argument.  Two  questions  may 
be  asked  about  it:  (1)  what  is  the  point  that  is  argued?  (2)  what  is  the 
special  purpose  of  insisting  upon  it  ? 

(1)  It  cannot  be  meant  merely  to  prove  that  One  Who  has  been  already 
spoken  of  as  "  the  effulgence  of  [God's]  glory "  is  in  Himself  "  better  than 
the  angels."  That  needs  no  proof :  but  the  argument  of  vv.  5  f  is  appended 
not  to  the  statement  that  He  is  "better  than  the  angels,"  but  that  He  "has 
inherited  a  more  excellent  name  than  they,"  i.e.  it  is  to  shew  that  the 
Messiah  of  prophecy  was  to  have  a  more  excellent  name — that  He  was  to 
be  the  Son  of  God. 

(2)  The  immediate  purpose  of  the  comparison  is  made  clear  in  ch.  ii.  2, 
"  If  the  word  spoken  through  angels  proved  stedfast."  The  writer  is  there 
speaking  of  the  giving  of  the  Law.  That  was  to  a  Jew  the  greatest  moment 
of  Revelation :  and  in  it,  as  we  know  from  Josephus,  Jewish  tradition 
pictured  a  two-fold  agency,  Moses  who  received  the  Revelation,  and  an 
angel  who  delivered  it.  This  tradition  is  recognized  more  than  once  in  the 
New  Testament,  as  in  Acts  vii.  38,  53,  Gal.  iii.  19.  There  is  a  tendency  in 
all  the  O.T.  (growing  in  the  later  Books)  to  treat  some  angelic  visitant  as  a 
necessary  intermediary  in  any  Revelation :  cp.  Acts  xxiii.  9,  where  "  if  a 
spirit  hath  spoken  to  him  or  an  angel"  is  the  way  in  which  a  Pharisee 
expresses  "if  he  has  received  a  revelation."  The  "angels"  then  will  be 
correlative  to  the  "  prophets  "  of  v.  1.  Neither  the  earthly  nor  the  heavenly 
intermediaries  of  the  older  Revelations  can  come  into  comparison  with  the 
single  Intermediary  of  the  new. 

Another  point,  though  less  certain,  with  respect  to  the  relevance  of  the 
special  comparison,  should  be  mentioned.  There  are  obvious  similarities 
between  the  dangers,  both  speculative  and  practical,  which  seem  to  be  in 
view  in  this  Epistle  (see  on  ix.  10,  xiii.  4,  9)  and  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Golossians.  In  the  latter  Epistle  (Col,  i.  15,  16,  ii.  10,  18)  the  expression  of 
the  exaltation  of  the  Christ  far  above  all  created  existences  is  associated 
with  the  particular  condemnation  of  the  worship  of  angels.  It  would  be  a 
natural  temptation  to  those  who  were  losing  hold  of  the  full  truth  of  Christ's 
Person  and  Work  to  find  shelter  in  the  growing  tendency  to  multiply 
mediators.  Whether  any  such  tendency  was  in  the  writer's  mind  (there  is 
nothing  in  the  text  of  the  Epistle  necessarily  to  imply  it)  is  a  question  on 
which  the  probability  will  vary  (as  is  pointed  out  in  the  Introduction  iii, 
5)  according  to  the  view  taken  of  the  destination  and  date  of  the  Epistle, 
It  was,  so  far  as  we  know,  in  the  Asiatic  Churches  that  this  tendency 
developed. 


HEBREWS 


[l.  5-END 


I.  5-END.    Comparison  op  the  Son  with  the  Angels. 

(Ps.  a.) 

5  For  unto  which  of  the  angels  said  he  at  any  time, 
Thou  art  my  Son, 
This  day  have  I  begotten  thee? 
and  again, 

I  will  be  to  him  a  Father, 
And  he  shall  be  to  me  a  Son? 

Some  general  remarks  on  the  quotations  in  the  whole  passage,  from  v.  5 
to  V.  14,  will  be  found  in  the  additional  note  below. 


5.  Thou  art  my  Son.  Ps.  ii.  7. 
In  the  second  clause  of  the  quotation 
the  English  rendering  fails  to  do 
justice  to  the  emphasis  which,  in  the 
Greek,  is  thrown  upon  "I"-="I,  and 
none  else."  The  expressions  of  Ps.  ii., 
like  those  of  Ps.  Ixxxix.,  are,  in  the 
first  instance,  a  "  lyric  echo  "  of  the 
promises  to  David  and  his  seed  re- 
corded in  2  Sam.  vii.  12-16,  part  of 
which  passage  is  quoted  in  the  fol- 
lowing words,  "I  wiU  be  to  him  a 


Father,  &c."  In  the  applications  in 
the  N.T.,  here  and  in  Acts  xiii.  33, 
the  thought  is  not  of  the  Eternal 
Generation  of  the  Divine  Son,  but 
of  His  acceptance  in  His  human 
nature  as  the  "anointed  Son"  of 
prophecy.  St  Paul  (Acts  l.c. ;  cp. 
Rom.  i.  4)  fixes  the  moment  of  the 
declaration  of  acceptance  at  the 
Resurrection :  but  there  is  no  in- 
dication that  this  is  in  view  here. 


{Deut.  xxxii.  4^.) 

6  ^And  when  he  again  ^bringeth  in  the  firstborn  into  ^the 
world  he  saith. 
And  let  all  the  angels  of  God  worship  him. 

^  Or,  And  again  when  he  bringeth  ^  Or,  shall  have  brought  in 

'  Gr.  the  inhabited  earth. 


6.  when  he  again.  "Again"  is 
better  taken,  as  in  A.V.  and  in  the 
margin  of  R.V.,  not  (as  in  the  text) 
as  qualifying  "bringeth,"  which  gives 
no  satisfactory  sense  (in  spite  of 
high  authority,  it  seems  inconceiv- 
able that  the  writer  is  thinking  of 
the  Second  Advent),  but  with  "he 
saith,"  merely  introducing  the  second 
quotation. 

tchen  he... bringeth  (or  better,  as 


it  is  in  the  margin,  "shall  have 
brought  ")...he  saith :  i.e.  "in  speak- 
ing of  the  time  when  he  shall  have 
brought... he  saith."  The  form  is 
exactly  parallel  to  ch.  x.  5,  "when 
he  Cometh  into  the  world  (i.e.  in 
prophetic  reference  to  the  moment 
of  the  Incarnation)  he  saith." 

the  firstborn.  This  seems  as  a 
title  of  the  Messiah  to  come  origin- 
ally from  Ps.  Ixxxix.  27  (a  Psalm 


1. 5-END]                          HEBREWS  7 

already  in  the  writer's  mind).     This  him.     Words  like  these  occur  in 

is  the  only  place  in  which  it  is  used  Ps.  xcvii.  7,  "worship  him,  all  ye 

absolutely.     The  N.T.  writers,  apply-  gods"  ("angels,"  LXX),  a  Psalm  in 

ing  it  to  the  same  Divine  Person,  whichtheestablishment  of  Jehovah's 

read  several,  and  various,  meanings  kingdom    is    foreseen.     The   words 

into  it :  Rom.  viii.  29,  "  the  firstborn  occur  exactly  in  an  addition  made 

among  many  brethren";  Col.  i.  15,  in  the  LXX  to  Deut.  xxxii.  43,  where 

"the firstborn  of  all  creation  "  ;  ibid.  again  the  return  of  Jehovah  to  right 

18  (cp.  Rev.   i.    5),  "the   firstborn  the  wrongs  of  the  world  is  prophe- 

from  the  dead."  sied. 
let  all  the  angels  of  God  tcorship 


(Pss.  civ.,  xlv.,  ciL,  ex.) 

7  And  of  the  angels  he  saith, 

Who  maketh  his  angels  ^  winds, 
And  his  ministers  a  flame  of  fire: 

8  but  of  the  Son  he  saith, 

Thy  throne,  0  God,  is  for  ever  and  ever; 
And  the  sceptre  of  uprightness  is  the  sceptre  of  ^thy 
kingdom. 

9  Thou  hast  loved  righteousness  and  hated  iniquity: 
Therefore  God,  thy  God,  hath  anointed  thee 
With  the  oil  of  gladness  above  thy  fellows. 

10  And 

Thou,  Lord,  in  the  beginning  hast  laid  the  foundation 

of  the  earth, 
And  the  heavens  are  the  work  of  thy  hands: 

11  They  shall  perish;  but  thou  continuest: 

And  they  all  shall  wax  old  as  doth  a  garment; 

12  And  as  a  mantle  shalt  thou  roll  them  up, 
As  a  garment,  and  they  shall  be  changed: 
But  thou  art  the  same, 

And  thy  years  shall  not  fail. 

13  But  of  which  of  the  angels  hath  he  said  at  any  time, 

Sit  thou  on  my  right  hand. 

Till  I  make  thine  enemies  the  footstool  of  thy  feet? 

14  Are  they  not  all  ministering  spirits,  sent  forth  to  do  service 
for  the  sake  of  them  that  shall  inherit  salvation  ? 

^  Or,  spirits  ^  The  two  oldest  Greek  manuscripts  read  his. 


8 


HEBREWS 


[l.  5-END 


7.  winds.  Both  in  the  original  (Ps. 
civ.  4)  and  in  this  quotation  it  is  clear 
that  "winds"  and  not  "spirits"  is  the 
righttranslation.  There  is  the  further 
question  whether  we  should  render 
"who  maketh  his  angels  winds"  or 
"who  maketh  winds  his  angels." 
The  former  is  the  translation  which 
suits  the  Greek  version  both  here 
and  in  the  Psalm.  The  latter  is 
given  in  R.V.  of  the  Psalm,  and  at 
first  sight  suits  the  context  best. 
But  to  those  who  believed  in  the 
agency  of  angels  the  two  statements 
meet  in  this,  that  the  angels  are 
spoken  of  as  agents  of  God's  will  in 
the  physical  world  :  they  are  coordi- 
nated with  physical  agencies,  even 
identified  with  them  :  the  wind  is  a 
messenger  ;  the  messenger  is  said  to 
become  a  wind.  The  Son  is  above 
nature. 

8.  O  God.  As  will  be  seen  in 
any  commentary  on  the  Psalms, 
doubt  hangs  over  the  original  mean- 
ing of  these  words.  On  its  face  the 
subject  of  Ps.  xlv.,  in  its  first  inten- 
tion, is  the  marriage  of  a  king  or 
a  king's  son ;  and  it  can  hardly  be 
argued  that  such  expressions  as  "  I 
have  said  ye  are  gods,"  Ps.  Ixxxii.  6 
(i.e.  "  you  hold  an  office  which  raises 
you  above  humanity"),  render  likely 
such  a  personal  address  to  a  human 
prince  as  "0  God!" 

Nor  is  the  rendering  the  most 
suitable  in  this  place.  If  it  were 
right,  surely  the  quotation  would  be 
the  climax.  We  cannot  get  beyond 
"  O  God  ! "  Anything  further  must 
weaken  rather  than  strengthen.  And 
again  the  rendering  fails  to  recognize 
the  careful  correspondence  in  each 
case  between  the  quotations  which 
characterize  severally  the  Christ  and 
the  angels.  In  vv.  5,  6,  the  Incar- 
nate Christ  is  hailed  as  God's  own 
Son,  while  the  angels  are  called  to  do 


worship  to  Him.  In  w».  1 3, 1 4,  the  Son 
is  the  Co-sessor  on  the  throne,  while 
the  angels  are  the  messengers  des- 
patched to  minister  for  the  benefit 
of  God's  people.  There  shoiild  be  a 
similar  correspondence  between  the 
three  quotations  in  vv.  7-12.  The 
relation  between  v.  7  and  vv.  10-12 
is  fairly  clear:  the  angels  of  whom 
the  Psalms  speak  as  God's  agents  in 
the  material  world  are  compared 
with  Him  of  Whom  they  speak  as  its 
Creator.  We  still  want  a  sense  for 
vv.  8,  9,  which  shall  harmonize  with 
this  comparison.  Westcott  seems  to 
guide  us  to  one  in  sajdng  that  the 
point  is  to  be  looked  for,  not  in  the 
application  to  the  Messiah  of  a 
Divine  title,  but  in  the  assertion  of 
"the  unique  character  of  His  king- 
dom, its  eternal  foundation  and  its 
moral  perfection."  The  human 
prince  in  the  lower  sense,  the 
Messiah  in  the  prophetic  sense,  of 
the  passage,  is  spoken  of  as  God's 
vicegerent  in  the  Tnoral  world.  To 
get  this  meaning  we  must  take  the 
phrase  rendered  "0  God"  as  a 
nominative  instead  of  a  vocative, 
and  render  either  (with  Westcott) 
"God  is  thy  throne,"  i.e.  God  is  the 
support  of  thy  throne  ;  or  (with  R.V. 
in  the  Psalm)  "thy  throne  is  the 
throne  of  God,"  i.e.  thy  throne  is 
(i.e.  represents)  God."  It  may  be 
noted  that  the  Vulgate,  followed  by 
our  Prayer-Book  Version,  reads  in 
V.  12  of  the  Psalm,  "thy  Lord  God" ; 
but  this  is  due  to  the  Messianic  in- 
terpretation already  put  on  the 
Psalm.  Both  Hebrew  text  and  LXX 
have  "thy  Lord,"  and  in  the  sense 
evidently  of  Gen.  xviii.  12,  as  com- 
mented on  in  1  Pet.  iii.  6,  "Sarah 
obeyed  Abraham,  calling  him  lord." 
9.  oil  of  gladness.  So  the  "oil 
of  joy,"  Is.  Ixi.  3.  Cp.  Matt.  vi.  17, 
"Thou,  when  thou  fastest,  anoint 


I.  5-end] 


HEBREWS 


9 


thine  head... that  thou  appear  not 
unto  men  to  fast."  The  reference 
is  not  to  tlie  anointing  of  a  king, 
but  to  the  use  of  unguents  at  feasts. 
10-12.  From  Ps.  cii.  25-27.  It 
is  an  address  to  God  ;  but  to  God  at 
once  as  the  Deliverer  of  His  people 
(it  is  a  Psalm  of  the  Exile)  and  as  the 
Creator  ;  see  additional  note. 

13.  The  quotation  from  Ps.  ex. 
takes  us  back  to  i\  3,  and  so  to  the 
subject  of  the  Epistle,  the  Priest- 
King:  "Has  He  ever  said  to  any 
angel  what  He  said  (as  we  have  seen) 
to  the  Messiah  of  Prophecy  ? "  The 
final  comparison  is  between  the  Son 
seated  in  kingly  state  by  the  Throne 
and  awaiting  the  assured  triumph, 
and  the  "messengers,"  the  "thou- 
sands," who  "  at  His  bidding  speed 
"  And  post  o'er  land  and  ocean  with- 
out rest"  (Milton). 

14.  sent  forth.  The  participle 
in  the  Greek  is  present,  i.e.  it  im- 
plies "who  are  constantly  being 
sent  forth,"  Milton's  "  without  rest." 

that  shall  inlierit  salvation .  Both 
phrases  have  their  roots  in  O.T. 
usage. 

(1)  inherit  is  a  more  coloured 
substitute  for  "receive,"  "obtain," 
"attain  to,"  and  is  used  with  the  same 
objects,  as  "eternal  life"  (Mark  x.  17, 
Luke  xviii.  18;  cp.  ihid.  v.  30),  "the 
kingdom  of  God"  (1  Cor.  vi.  9 ;  cp. 
Matt.  xxv.  34,  where'the  later  words 
interpret  "inherit,"  "inherit  the 
kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world"),  "promises" 
(cp.  in  this  Epistle,  ch.  vi.  12,  with 
ri.  15,  xi.  39),  "a  blessing"  (1  Pet.  iii. 


9).  What  is  added  is  the  suggestion 
that  in  some  way  the  receiving  is 
like  in  conditions  to  the  receiving  of 
a  possession  in  virtue  of  a  will  or  of 
some  other  external  arrangement 
which  regulates  the  devolution  of 
property.  There  may  be  the  idea  of 
sonship(Rom.  viii.  17)  or  of  promise — 
it  may  be,  by  a  further  figure,  coven- 
anted promise.   In  any  case  it  implies 

(1)  something  of  delay  and  waiting, 

(2)  an  assured,  even  if  conditional, 
right :  the  "  heir "  will  come  sooner 
or  later  into  his  own,  unless  indeed 
by  his  own  fault  he  is  "  disinherited" 
(Numb.  xiv.  12).  Its  first  use  is  of 
the  Promised  Land,  as  in  Gen.  xv.  8, 
Deut.  i.  38,  but  it  is  generalized  as  a 
figure  even  in  the  O.T.,  as  in  Prov.  iii. 
15,  "the  wise  shall  inherit  glory." 

(2)  salvation,  with  all  the  cog- 
nate words,  "to  save,"  "Saviour," 
&c.,  is  used  in  the  Bible,  in  the  first 
place,  of  the  great  temporal  deliver- 
ances of  the  chosen  people,  especially 
the  deliverance  from  Pharaoh  and 
from  the  Red  Sea  (see,  for  instance, 
Exod.  xiv.  13,  and  cp.  1  Sam.  xiv.  45, 
2  Chron.  xx.  17).  This  figure  is  often 
in  the  background  consciously  in  the 
N.T.  uses,  and  especially  in  this 
Epistle  (see  notes  on  ch.  ii.  3,  10, 
V.  9,  vi.  9,  ix.  28,  xi.  7).  An  instruc- 
tive instance  of  the  transition  from 
the  national  point  of  view  to  the 
personal  and  spiritual,  with  or  with- 
out conscious  figure,  may  be  seen  in 
the  uses  of  the  word  "  salvation  "  in 
the  hymn  of  Zacharias  (Luke  i.  68 
foil.). 


Additional  Note  on  the  quotations  in  I.  5-14. 

It  is  scarcely  part  of  the  duty  of  a  commentator  on  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews  to  discuss  in  the  abstract  different  views  of  Messianic  Prophecy  ; 
but  we  must  hold  fast  to  the  principle  that  a  writer  who  is  worth  attention, 
if  he  argues,  argues  to  persuade.  Argument  is  futile  unless  it  is  assumed 
that  those  to  whom  it  is  addressed  will  admit  its  premisses.    We  may  take 


10  HEBREWS  [1. 5-END 

it  for  granted  then  that  these  passages  from  the  prophetic  Scriptures, 
whatever  be  their  own  literary  history,  would  be  held,  by  those  for  whom  the 
Epistle  was  intended,  to  relate  to  the  Messiah.  Starting  from  this,  we  may 
make  two  remarks  on  the  nature  and  choice  of  the  passages  here 
appealed  to. 

(1)  On  the  nature  of  the  passages  which  are  here  treated  as  Messianic. 
They  are  of  two  kinds  : 

{a)  There  are  those  which  address,  or  speak  of,  some  earthly  prince, 
present  or  to  come,  in  terms  too  great  for  humanity ;  the  idea  suggested 
being  that  prophecy  looked  through  him  to  the  ideal  king  to  be  bom 
presently  of  David's  line. 

(6)  There  are  those  which  start  confessedly  by  speaking  of  Jehovah,  but 
of  Him  as  the  agent  in  Creation,  or  as  coming  to  save  His  people  ;  as  doing, 
in  other  words,  things  which  the  New  Testament  teaches  us  to  view  as  actions 
of  God  in  the  Person  of  the  Divine  Son. 

(2)  On  the  sources  from  which  the  passages  are  taken. 

With  two  exceptions,  if  indeed  they  are  exceptions,  it  will  be  noticed 
that  all  the  quotations,  both  with  respect  to  the  Messiah  and  to  the  angels, 
are  taken  from  the  Psalter.  This  may  be  characteristic  of  the  writer,  or  it 
may  mean  that  he  could  presume  in  his  readers  a  special  familiarity  with 
that  part  of  the  Scriptures.  Westcott  points  out  that  throughout  the 
Epistle  the  quotations  from  the  Psalms  greatly  outnumber  those  from  any 
other  Book  :  if  we  limit  our  view  to  the  quotations  of  primary  importance  in 
the  argument,  the  disproportion  is  still  greater.  What  is  true  of  other 
prophetic  writings  is  true  especially  of  the  Psalter,  that  in  taking  account  of 
its  history  we  cannot  leave  out  the  meanings  that  were  given  to  it,  the  hopes 
that  it  fed,  through  the  centuries  during  which  it  was  used.  Is  it  too  much 
to  say  that  there  may  be  an  inspiration  in  the  use,  as  well  as  in  the 
composition^  of  such  a  Scripture? 

The  exceptions  referred  to  above  are  : 

1.  The  words  in  v.  5,  "  I  will  be  to  him  a  Father  and  he  shall  be  to  me 
a  Son,"  which,  as  they  stand,  are  fomid  only  as  put  into  Nathan's  mouth  in 
2  Sam.  vii.  14.  But  they  belong  to  and  are  the  basis  of  Ps.  ii.,  and  they, 
and  the  promise  of  which  they  form  part,  would  be  familiar  to  a  Jewish 
writer  or  reader  in  the  poetical  and  slightly  amplified  form  in  which  they  are 
embodied  in  Ps.  Ixxxix. 

2.  The  words  in  v.  6,  "  And  let  all  the  angels  of  God  worship  him,"  as 
has  been  said,  may  be  a  slightly  altered  form  of  Ps.  xcvii.  7 ;  but  if,  as  is  very 
possible,  they  came  to  the  writer's  memory  from  the  song  of  Moses  in 
Deut.  xxxii.,  it  is  worth  noticing  that  that  song  seems  itself  to  have  been 
used  for  liturgical  purposes,  and  is  actually  found  in  the  Alexandrine  MS 
repeated  as  an  appendix  to  the  Psalter. 

It  may  be  added  that  the  phrase  in  v.  14,  "  ministering  spirits  "  {keirovp- 
yiKb.  7rv€iifxaTa),  and  the  words  which  follow,  which  are  treated  by  commenta- 
tors as  a  summary  of  the  picture  presented  in  Holy  Scripture  of  angelic 
existence,  have  their  roots  in  the  Psalter.  The  word  Xeirovpyoi  ("  servants," 
but  never  quite  losing  its  proper  sense  of  "  public  servants  "),  as  used  of  the 
angels,  belongs  to  Pss.  ciii.  21,  "Praise  the  Lord,  ye  angels  of  his... ye  servants 


II.  1-4]  HEBREWS  11 

of  his  that  do  his  pleasure,"  and  civ.  4  ;  and  the  picture  of  them  as  helping 
"  them  that  shall  inherit  salvation  "  is  well  illustrated  by  such  expressions  as 
Ps.  xci.  11,  12,  "  He  shall  give  his  angels  charge  over  thee  to  keep  thee  in  all 
thy  ways :  they  shall  bear  thee  up  in  their  hands  that  thou  hurt  not  thy  foot 
against  a  stone,"  or  Ps.  xxxiv.  7,  "  the  angel  of  the  Lord  encampeth  round 
about  them  that  fear  him  and  delivereth  them." 


II.  1-4.    Attention  bespoken  for  the  Revelation. 

II.     1  Therefore  we  ought  to  give  the  more  earnest  heed  to 
the  things  that  were  heard,  lest  haply  we  drift  away  frotn 

2  them.  For  if  the  word  spoken  through  angels  proved 
stedfast,  and  every  transgression  and  disobedience  received 

3  a  just  recompense  of  reward ;  how  shall  we  escape,  if  we 
neglect  so  great  salvation  ?  which  having  at  the  first  been 
spoken  through  the  Lord,  was  confirmed  unto  us  by  them 

4  that  heard ;  God  also  bearing  witness  with  them,  both 
by  signs  and  wonders,  and  by  manifold  powers,  and  by 
^gifts  of  the  ^Holy  Ghost,  according  to  his  own  will. 

*  Gr.  distributions.         ^  Or,  Holy  Spirit :  and  so  throughout  this  Book. 

In  the  first  four  verses  of  ch.  ii.  we  have  the  first  interruption  of  argument 
for  the  purpose  of  exhortation  ;  but  the  paragraph  serves  (1)  to  make  clearer 
what  has  been  already  said  in  the  preceding  chapter  ;  (2)  to  complete  the 
prologue  by  disclosing  the  hortative  purpose  of  the  Epistle. 

IL  1.  7%er^ore,  that  is, because  of  through  angels"  is  the  Law  "ordained 

the  surpassing  dignity  of  the  Bearer  through  angels"  of  Gal.  iii.  19. 

of  the  new  Revelation.  proved  stedfast.     Its  commands 

drift  away.    The  Greek  verb  is  were  enforced ;    its    promises   and 

used  first  of  water,  running  from  a  threatenings  came  true, 

leaky  vessel  or  ebbing  from  under  transgression   and  disobedience. 

a  stranded  boat :   then  metaphori-  It  is  a  climax,  "  transgression  and 

cally  of  a  person  losing  his  moorings,  even  careless  hearing."     "  Disobedi- 

slipping  from  his  senses,  convictions,  ence,"  here  the  rendering  of  irapa- 

resolves.  kotj  (lit.  "hearing  amiss,"  "hearing 

2.     word  spoken.     It  is  more  ob-  with   half   an   ear "),    is   the   more 

vious  in  the  Greek  that  we  are  taken  general     word,     covering     "  negli- 

back  to  ch.  i.  1,  2,  "having  spoken...  gences"  as  well  as  wilful  breaches 

hath    spoken."     We    are    thinking  of  law. 

again  of  the  two  Revelations.  3.   how  shall  we  escape  ?  The  ar- 

through  angels.     See  additional  gument  recurs  in  ch.  x.  28  and  xii.  25. 

note  on  i.  4.    The  "word  spoken  neglect  so  great  salvation.    Two 


12 


HEBREWS 


[ii.  1-4 


lines  of  thought  meet.  The  words 
anticipate  the  lesson  to  be  drawn  in 
ch.  iii.  from  the  failure  of  Israel  in  the 
wilderness  :  They  "  neglected  a  great 
salvation."  They  "  thought  scorn  of 
that  pleasant  land.  They  forgat 
God  their  Saviour"  (Ps.  cvi.).  But 
they  also  suggest  a  comparison  of 
the  two  Dispensations.  "  So  great " 
is  equivalent  to  "  so  much  greater," 
greater  in  the  Person  of  the  Inter- 
mediary, in  the  credentials  of  the 
Revelation  ;  greater  also  (to  use  the 
language  of  2  Cor.  iii.  9)  as  a 
ministry  not  "of  condemnation"  but 
of  salvation.  For  "salvation,"  see 
on  i  14. 

4.  Cp.  Mark  xvi.  20.  The  ac- 
cumulated phrases  ("signs,"  "won- 
ders," "  powers,"  "  gifts  ")  express  the 


manifold  character  of  the  proofs  of 
some  great  spiritual  force  acting  up- 
on and  through  the  first  disciples, 
and  exhibiting  itself  in  novel  power 
and  heightened  gifts,  as  well  as  in 
what  are  commonly  called  "miracles." 
Westcott  remarks  on  the  testimony 
to  the  reality  of  the  "spiritual  gifts  " 
contained  in  this  appeal  to  them, 
addressed  to  those  whose  personal 
experience  could  check  any  ex- 
aggeration. 

according  to  his  own  will :  i.e. 
the  will  of  God.  The  point  of  the 
words  is  to  press  the  truth  that  it 
was  God  Himself  who  vouched  for 
the  witnesses,  for,  however  various 
were  the  signs  and  gifts,  there  was 
His  own  wiU  behind  them. 


Additional  Note  on  w.  3,  4. 

These  verses  have  a  bearing  on  the  question  of  the  authorship  of  the 
Epistle.  Could  they  be  written  by  St  Paul,  who  claims  always  to  have 
received  the  Gospel  "neither  of  man  nor  by  man"  but  from  Christ  Himself? 

The  question  is  not  answered  by  quoting  1  Cor.  xv.  3,  "I  delivered 
unto  you  that  which  also  I  received,"  for  as  we  see  from  id.  xi.  23,  that 
form  of  expression  is  consistent  with  the  addition  "of  the  Lord,"  which 
brings  it  into  harmony  vrith  his  usual  attitude.  Is  he  "transferring  to 
himself  in  a  figure"  the  position  of  those  to  whom  he  writes?  It  is  possible; 
and  it  may  be  conceded  that,  if  the  writer  be  St  Paul,  he  is  not  in  this 
Epistle  concerned,  as  he  is  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Galatians,  to  assert  his 
independent  Apostleship.  But  the  whole  picture  of  a  faith  resting  on  the 
testimony  of  the  first  hearers  (the  "eyewitnesses"  of  Luke  i.  2),  and  on 
the  evidence  of  miraculous  gifts,  is  not  like  St  Paul. 

The  passage  is  also  interesting  as  illustrating  the  evidence  on  which 
Christianity  in  the  first  age  made  its  appeal  to  a  Jew — viz.  (1)  the  intrinsic 
attraction  of  the  "great  deliverance"  offered,  (2)  vouched  for  as  it  was  by 
the  words  of  Christ,  (3)  these  words  being  reported  by  those  who  heard 
them  from  His  own  lips,  (4)  and  supported  by  the  further  evidence  of 
"signs  and  wonders." 


II.  5-18]  HEBREWS  13 

II.  5-18.  Reasons  for  the  true  Incarnation  of  the  Son. 
{The  destiny  of  man,  vv.  5-8.) 

5  For  not  unto  angels  did  he  subject  ^the  world  to  come, 

6  whereof  we  speak.  But  one  hath  somewhere  testified, 
saying, 

What  is  man  that  thou  art  mindful  of  him  ? 
Or  the  son  of  man,  that  thou  visitest  him  ? 

7  Thou  madest  him  ^a  little  lower  than  the  angels ; 
Thou  crownedst  him  with  glory  and  honour, 
^And  didst  set  him  over  the  works  of  thy  hands : 

8  Thou  didst  put  all  things  in  subjection  under  his  feet. 
For  in  that  he  subjected  all  things  unto  him,  he  left  nothing 
that  is  not  subject  to  him.  But  now  we  see  not  yet  all  things 
subjected  to  him. 

^  Gr.  the  inhabited  earth,  '  Or,  for  a  little  while  lower 

*  Many  authorities  omit  And  didst — hands. 

General  Note  on  vv.  5-8. 

With  V.  5  we  return  to  the  argument,  the  "For"  depending  not  so  much 
on  the  immediately  preceding  exhortation  as  on  the  ground  alleged  for  that 
exhortation,  viz.  the  infinite  superiority  of  the  Christ  of  prophecy  to  any 
angel. 

The  nature  of  the  argument  which  it  adds  should  be  noticed.  It  justifies 
the  previous  conclusions  by  asserting  something  stronger,  which,  if  true, 
includes  and  renders  more  credible  what  has  been  asserted  before.  It  has 
been  shewn  that  prophecy  gave  to  the  Messiah  a  place  indefinitely  higher 
than  that  of  angels.  It  is  now  to  be  shewn  that  it  also  gave  to  man  a  place 
above  them,  a  place  not  indeed  as  yet  realized  by  man  as  he  is,  but  which 
has  been  realized  in  a  Man,  even  in  Jesus,  Who  (as  will  be  shewn  presently) 
is  man's  representative,  a  true  man  and  the  "  Captain  of  [man's]  salvation." 

The  writer,  in  these  verses  and  in  those  which  follow  as  their  comment,  has 
availed  himself  of  a  turn  given  in  the  LXX,  "  a  little  lower  than  the  angels," 
which  emphasizes  the  condescension,  where  the  Hebrew,  "a  little  lower  than 
God  "  (evidently  the  original  form,  as  suiting  the  words  of  Genesis  which  it 
recalls,  "in  the  image  of  God"),  is  meant  to  mark  the  dignity,  not  the 
humility,  of  man's  origin.  But  the  change,  if  it  helps  the  argument,  is  not 
necessary  to  it.  The  whole  Psalm  speaks  of  the  contrast  between  man's 
apparent  weakness  and  his  imperial  destiny.  The  Christ  has  realized  the 
destiny  :  but  that  carries  with  it  the  humiliation  as  well  as  the  glorification. 
Glorification  through  humiliation  is  the  idea  which  the  writer  is  seeking  to 
impress. 


14  HEBREWS  [ii.  6-18 

5.  he :  i.e.  the  true  Author  of  the  is  found  elsewhere  in  this  Epistle 
prophetic  Scriptures  ;  cp.  iv.  4,  7.  A  (and  in  other  writers  of  the  time, 
frequent  use  in  this  Epistle  ;  as  though  not  in  the  New  Testament) ; 
Vaughan  happily  calls  it,  "the  uni-  as  ch.  iv.  4,  "he  hath  said  some- 
versal  nominative  to  Providences  where."  Here  at  least  it  has  a 
and  Scriptures."  special  force,  as  we  might  say  "  there  . 

the  world  to  come,  whereof  we  is  no  quotation  to  be  found  promis- 

speak :  "  the  world  of  man  as  it  is  ing  sovereignty  to  angels,  but  there 

to  be  in  the  new  Messianic  Dispensa-  is  a  place  where  it  is  promised  to 

tion,  which  is  the  whole  subject  of  man."    The  fact  that  there  is  such  a 

this  Epistle."  promise  is  more  prominent  at  the 

The  writer  seems  to  face  the  sug-  moment  than  the   place  where   it 

gestion  that  so  far  he  has  spoken  occurs. 

only  of  what  has  been,  and  to  ask  testified.  Rather "  protested."  The 
whether  any  greater  position  is  as-  word  and  its  cognates  are  used  tech- 
signed  to  angels  in  the  prophetic  nically  of  an  appeal  from  a  legal 
picture  of  the  coming  Dispensation.  decision,   and  generally    of   strong 

6.  one... somewhere.  This  inde-  expression  whether  of  i-emonstrance, 
finite  form  of  introducing  a  quotation  or  only  (as  here)  of  surprise. 


(Realized  in  Jesus,  vv.  9-18.) 

9  But  we  behold  him  who  hath  been  made  ^a  little  lower  than 
the  angels,  even  Jesus,  because  of  the  suffering  of  death 
crowned  with  glory  and  honour,  that  by  the  grace  of  God  he 

10  should  taste  death  for  every  man.  For  it  became  him,  for 
whom  are  all  things,  and  through  whom  are  all  things,  ^in 
bringing  many  sons  unto  glory,  to  make  the  ^author  of  their 

11  salvation  perfect  through  sufferings.  For  both  he  that  sancti- 
fieth  and  they  that  are  sanctified  are  all  of  one  :  for  which 

12  cause  he  is  not  ashamed  to  call  them  brethren,  saying, 

I  will  declare  thy  name  unto  my  brethren, 

In  the  midst  of  the  ^congregation  will  I  sing  thy  praise. 

13  And  again, 

I  will  put  my  trust  in  him. 
And  again. 

Behold,  I  and  the  children  which  God  hath  given  me. 

14  Since  then  the  children  are  sharers  in  ^  flesh  and  blood,  he 
also  himself  in  like  manner  partook  of  the  same ;  that 
through  death  he  ^might  bring  to  nought  him  that  ''had  the 

15  power  of  death,  that  is,  the  devil ;  and  ^  might  deliver  all 
them  who  through  fear  of  death  were  all  their  lifetime 


n.  5-18] 


HEBREWS 


15 


16  subject  to  bondage.    For  verily  not  of  angels  doth  he  take 

17  hold,  but  he  taketh  hold  of  the  seed  of  Abraham.  Where- 
fore it  behoved  him  in  all  things  to  be  made  like  unto  his 
brethren,  that  he  might  be  a  merciful  and  faithful  high 
priest  in  things  pertaining  unto  God,  to  make  propitiation 

18  for  the  sins  of  the  people.  ^For  ^in  that  he  himself  hath 
suffered  being  tempted,  he  is  able  to  succour  them  that  are 
tempted. 

^  Or,  for  a  little  while  lower         *  Or,  having  brought  ^  Or,  captain 

*  Or,  church  ^  Gr.  blood  andjlesh.  ^  Or,  may         ^  Or,  hath 

8  Or,  For  having  been  himself  tempted  in  that  wherein  he  hath  suffered 
^  Or,  wherein. 


9.  a  little  lower  than  the  angels  ; 
although,  as  we  have  seen,  in  His 
Eternal  Being  He  was  so  infinitely 
above  them.  We  are  meant  to  go 
back  in  thought  for  the  moment  to 
ch.  i. 

that  by  the  grace  of  God  he  should 
taste.  We  might  paraphrase  "in 
the  loving  purpose  of  God  that  he 
should  taste."  "That"  introduces 
the  purpose  not  of  part,  but  of 
the  whole  of  the  process ;  not  of  the 
crowning  with  glory  and  honour, 
but  of  such  crowning  after^  and  as 
a  consequence  o/J  suifering,  of  the 
glorification  through  humiliation 
and  pain.  Note  also  that  the  em- 
phasis of  the  clause  is  on  "  for  eveiy 
man,"  i.e.  as  man's  representative, 
and  for  the  comfort  and  salvation  of 
every  man.  It  is  this  that  justifies 
the  implication  that  the  prophecy  of 
the  glorification  of  mankind  through 
sufi"ering  is  in  Him  fulfilled. 

taste ;  as  of  a  bitter  cup  :  to  learn 
what  it  is  like :  cp.  the  figure  of  a 
"cup"  in  our  Lord's  own  words,  as 
John  xviii.  11. 

10.  it  became  him.  Cp.  the  repeti- 
tion of  the  expression  in  ch.  vii.  26, 
"  such  a  high  priest  became  us."  In 
both  cases  the  writer  is  justifying 


what  the  Jewish  prejudices  of  his 
readers  stumbled  at :  here  a  true  In- 
carnation :  there  the  picture  of  Christ's 
priestly  work.  The  answer  is  in 
both  cases.  It  was  in  the  fitness  of 
things:  here,  it  was  what  God's 
Nature  demanded :  there,  it  was 
what  our  human  nature  demanded. 

for  whom  are  all  things,  and 
through  whom  are  all  things.  With 
this  expression  of  the  supremacy  of 
God's  will  cp.  Rom.  xi.  36, 1  Cor.  viii. 
6,  Col.  i.  16,  Rev.  iv.  11.  The  pur- 
pose here  is  not  to  explain  why  it 
"  became  Him,"  but  to  indicate  that, 
if  it  became  Him,  no  further  reason 
was  needed  for  things  being  as  they 
are.  The  writer  is  supporting  his 
statement  (».  9)  that  it  was  "  by  the 
grace  of  God."  Notice  also  that  the 
emphasis  in  this  verse  is  on  "through 
sufferings."  It  is  not  the  "making 
perfect "  that  is  in  question,  but  the 
m,ode  of  the  perfecting. 

to  make  perfect,  in  this  place,  is, 
in  the  first  instance,  to  give  the 
crowning  fitness  for  His  work  and 
oflice.  And  this  crowning  fitness 
lies  in  suflfering,  in  the  first  place, 
because  only  through  suff"ering  could 
He  be  made  one  with  His  brethren, 
whom  He  came  to  succour.    But 


16 


HEBREWS 


[II.  5-18 


there  is  a  further  sense  in  the  words ; 
for  the  likeness  must  lie  not  in  the 
suflFering  only,  but,  deeper  still,  in 
the  purposes  and  effect  of  the  suffer- 
ing. Suffering  in  man  is  not  pur- 
poseless. It  has  a  disciplinary  end. 
And  so  He  stooped  not  only  to  suffer, 
and  so  to  feel  with  sufferers,  but  also 
to  "  learn  obedience  "  through  suffer- 
ing (ch.  V.  8)  and  so  to  be  an  example 
to  them  in  the  bearing  and  use  of 
suffering. 

the  author  (marg.  captain)  of 
their  salcation.  The  word  (apxT/os) 
here  translated  "author"  or  "cap- 
tain" occurs  only  four  times  in  the 
N.T.,  twice  in  this  Epistle,  the  other 
place  being  ch.  xii.  2,  "  Jesus,  the 
Author  [or  Captain]  and  Perfecter 
of  our  faith " ;  twice  in  the  Acts, 
both  times  in  speeches  of  St  Peter's, 
iii.  15,  "the  Prince  [or  Author]  of 
life,"  and  v.  31,  "a  Prince  and  a 
Saviour"(a  combination  which  brings 
it  very  close  to  the  present  passage). 
It  is  a  word  of  frequent  use  in 
classical  Greek,  both  for  a  "  leader  " 
(whether  literally  or  metaphorically) 
and  for  an  "originator."  In  the 
present  case  the  combination  with 
the  words  "bringing... to  glory"  and 
"salvation"  (or  "deliverance,"  see 
the  next  note)  indicates  that  the 
writer  has  already  in  view  the  figure, 
which  will  have  such  a  large  place  in 
the  Epistle,  of  the  Christ  as  the 
Leader,  the  Moses  or  Joshua,  of  the 
new  deliverance  from  bondage  and 
entrance  on  a  land  of  promise.  We 
may  remember  the  vision  of  the 
"  Captain  "  of  the  hosts  of  the  Lord 
(it  is  virtually  the  same  word  in  the 
LXX)  whom  Joshua  saw  by  Jericho, 
Josh.  V.  13. 

salvation.  This  word  (see  note  on 
L  14)  and  "sanctifieth"  in  «>.  11  both 
belong  originally  to  the  great  deliver- 
ance of  Israel  and  his  consecration 


to  be  God's  people :  op.  Bxod.  xiv. 
13,  "  Stand  still  and  see  the  salvation 
of  the  Lord,"  xv.  2  (in  Miriam's  song), 
"  [the  Lord]  is  become  my  salvation," 
xxxi.  13,  "I  am  the  Lord  that  doth 
sanctify  you." 

11.  I'or.  The  argument  is, 
"  Through  sufferings,  I  say,  because 
the  Christ  of  prophecy  and  those  to 
whom  He  comes  have  the  closest  tie 
in  a  common  Fatherhood.  It  is  fit- 
ting therefore  (as  was  said)  that  He 
should  share  their  nature  with  its 
pains." 

he  that  sanctifieth... they  that  are 
sanctified.  The  expression  chosen 
has  reference  (as  has  been  said)  to 
the  phrases  used  of  the  inauguration 
of  the  Covenant  in  Exod.  xix.  and 
elsewhere.  It  anticipates,  by  what 
it  implies,  the  phrase  of  ch.  ix.  15, 
"Mediator  of  a  new  Covenant." 

of  one  :  of  a  common  origin : 
if  any  substantive  were  to  be  supplied 
it  would  be  "father,"  i.e.  "God."  But 
the  writer  purposely  does  not  define. 
Cp.  John  viii.  41.  There  it  is  said 
of  the  Jewish  race.  St  Paul  extends 
it  to  all  humanity,  Acts  xvii.  26,  28. 
It  is  here  extended  to  include,  in 
His  human  nature,  the  Christ. 

12,  13.  The  three  quotations  are 
put  together  as  expressing  in  pro- 
phetic figures  the  closeness  of  rela- 
tion conceived  between  the  Messiah 
and  His  Church :  the  first  from 
Ps.  xxii.  22  (a  Psalm  treated  by  the 
writer  of  this  Epistle  as  Messianic ; 
see  general  note  on  ch.  v.  7-10)  which 
exhibits  Him  as  calling  the  members 
of  the  Church  His  "brethren"  and 
speaking  of  Himself  as  leading  its 
worship ;  the  second  either  from 
2  Sam.  xxii.  3  (Ps.  xviii.  2),  or  more 
probably  from  Isaiah  viii.  17  (LXX), 
in  which  the  prophet,  speaking  (it  is 
presumed)  in  the  name  of  Messiah, 
puts  Him  in  the  same  attitude  as 


11.  5-18] 


HEBREWS 


17 


His  believing  people  towards  God 
("  their  Father  and  His  ") ;  the  third, 
the  words  which  immediately  follow 
the  preceding  quotation  in  Isaiah  viii., 
and  in  which  (the  figure  being 
changed)  it  is  assumed  that  the 
prophet  with  his  children  (Shear- 
jashub  and  Mahershalalhashbaz)  is 
typical  of  the  Messiah  and  his 
people,  the  "children  whom  God 
has  given  Him."    Cp.  John  xviL  6. 

14.  tlie  children.  Notice  how 
the  "  children  "  in  this  verse  takes  up 
the  "children"  of  o.  13  ;  and  so  also 
the"brethren"of  ».  17the  "brethren" 
of  m  11,  12. 

throtigh  death  (note  that  "death" 
has  in  the  Greek  the  definite  article). 
Not,  in  the  first  instance, "  His  death," 
but  "  death  as  part  of  the  burden  of 
himianity,"  the  death  which  men 
fear,  v.  15.  Death,  the  punishment, 
the  result  of  the  devil's  work,  shall 
be  the  instrument  of  destruction  to 
the  devil's  power ;  because  He  (the 
Saviour,  the  Son  of  God),  if  He  has 
taken  our  nature  to  the  full,  will  die, 
and  in  His  death  aU  the  terror  and 
power  of  death  will  vanish  away. 
The  thought  is  in  some  way  like  that 
of  1  Tim.  ii.  15,  "through  the  child- 
bearing  "  ;  what  was  the  curse,  the 
punishment  of  the  woman's  sin,  be- 
comes, in  that  the  Christ  was  bom 
of  woman,  her  salvation. 

bring  to  nought.  Rather  "render 
impotent."  The  vsTiter  does  not  ex- 
plain here  how  the  death  of  Christ 
has  this  efiect ;  but  the  thought 
probably  is  of  cleansing  of  the  con- 
science by  the  effectual  propitiation 
(ch.  ix.  14,  X.  2,  22);  so  that  the 
Pauline  parallel  will  be  1  Cor.  xv.  56, 
"the  sting  of  death  is  sin... but 
thanks  be  to  God  that  giveth  us  the 
victory,"  rather  than  2  Tim.  i  10, 
although  the  latter  has  the  same 
verb    which    is    used    here,    "who 


abolished      (rendered      impotent) 
death." 

the  devil;  the  impersonated  power 
of  evil ;  but  the  name  indicates  a 
special  manifestation  of  the  evil 
power.  At  one  time  it  is  "Satan," 
the  Adversary,  the  power  that  re- 
sists and  thwarts  what  is  good ;  at 
another,  the  "  Tempter"  ;  at  another 
(as  here)  the  "Devil,"  that  is  the 
"  Slanderer  " — "the  malicious  accuser 
of  God  to  man  and  of  us  to  God, 
and  again  of  ourselves  to  one  an- 
other," Chrys.  on  2  Cor.  p.  438  D 
quoted  by  Hort  on  James  iv.  7; — 
the  spirit  who  finds  his  voice  in  an 
accusing  conscience. 

15.  deliver... bondage.  The'phrases 
still  recall  those  of  the  Exodus. 
Life  in  subjection  to  the  fear  of 
death  is  viewed  as  the  Egyptian 
bondage  from  which  Christ  freed  us. 
That  the  fear  of  death  was  felt  as  a 
serioiis  burden  at  the  time  in  the 
Jewish  world  is  nowhere  stated  in 
the  N.T.  as  definitely  as  here,  though 
it  is  assumed  in  such  expressions  as 
those  of  2  Tim.  i.  10.  It  must  be  re- 
membered that  the  writer's  argument 
is  futile  for  his  purpose  unless  his 
readers'  consciousness  could  gener- 
ally go  with  him  in  his  view  of  the 
fact.  Something  of  the  same  kind  is 
implied  in  respect  of  Roman  society 
by  the  explosion,  as  of  pent-up  feel- 
ing, which  we  witness  in  the  poem  of 
Lucretius.  That  is  from  end  to  end 
a  passionate  argimient  against  the 
fear  of  death  and  the  superstition  of 
which  it  was  the  basis.  The  fear 
which  he  combated  was  not  the  fear 
of  annihilation,  but  one  with  which 
the  writer  of  this  Epistle  could  sym- 
pathize, the  fear  of  what  might  come 
after  death ;  "  aeternas  quoniam  poe- 
nas  in  morte  timendumst,"  L  HI. 

16.  "For  it  is  not  angels,  you  will 
admit  (the  particle  rendered  "verily" 


18 


HEBREWS 


[II.  5-18 


has  an  ironical  force,  as  though  he 
were  apologizing  for  a  truism),  that 
He  is  taking  by  the  hand,  but  chil- 
dren of  Abraham."  The  word  ren- 
dered "  is  taking  hold  of"  is  the  same 
word  that  is  used  in  the  LXX,  in  the 
passage  from  Jer.  xxxi.  quoted  in 
ch.  viii.  9,  of  God's  "taking  [the 
Israelites]  by  the  hand  "  to  lead  thenl 
out  of  Egypt.  There  is  the  same 
sense  here,  of  a  purpose  to  rescue. 
Cp.  also  (though  the  Greek  verb  is  a 
different  one)  the  action  of  the  angel 
who  "  laid  hold  upon  Lot's  hand  "  to 
lead  him  out  of  Sodom,  Gen.  xix.  16. 

the  seed  of  Abraham.  He  might 
have  said  "  human  kind " ;  and  the 
argument  points  to  a  conclusion  no 
less  broad  than  that ;  but  the  limita- 
tion brings  it  home  to  his  readers, 
and  helps  the  feeling  (implicit  in  the 
preceding  words)  that  the  Incarna- 
tion, wonderful  as  it  is,  is  of  a  piece 
with  the  pasthistory  of  their  favoured 
race,  one  more  intervention  in  its 
behalf.  It  leads,  as  do  the  figures 
of  V.  15,  to  the  identification  of  the 
Christ  in  iii.  1  as  the  new  and  greater 
Moses — the  Dehverer. 

17.  that  he  might  he  a... high 
priest.  Notice  how  all  through  this 
passage  it  is  taken  for  granted  that 
the  Christian  "  deliverance  "  is  a  de- 
liverance from  sin :  the  Leader  there- 
fore must  be  a  High  Priest  to  '•  make 
propitiation":  the  Moses  "of  our 
confession  "  (as  it  is  summed  up  in 
ch.  iii.  1)  must  be  the  Aaron  also. 

faithful :  rather  "  trustworthy," 
one  that  can  be  trusted, 

in  things  pertaining  unto  God.  The 
expression  recurs  in  ch.  v.  1.  Here, 
as  there,  the  purpose  is  to  make 


clear  the  two  relations  of  the  priest, 
as  towards  God  and  towards  men. 
In  order  to  represent  men  effectively 
towards  God,  He  must  stand  by  their 
side  as  one  of  themselves. 

to  make  propitiation  for.  There 
is  a  valuable  note  of  Westcott's  (addi- 
tional note  on  1  John  ii.  2)  on  the 
different  use  in  classical  and  Biblical 
Greek  respectively  of  the  verb  which 
is  thus  rendered  here.  The  normal 
construction  in  classical  Greek  is  with 
the  object-accusative  of  the  person 
propitiated ;  and  this  construction  is 
revived  in  the  patristic  writers.  But 
it  is  not  the  usage  of  the  Bible.  Just 
as  we  read  (Rom.  v.  10, 2  Cor.  v.  18  f ) 
of  man  being  "reconciled"  to  God, 
of  God  "reconciling"  man  to  Him- 
self, but  never  of  God  being  "recon- 
ciled" to  man,  so  such  a  phrase  as 
"propitiating  God"  is  foreign  to  the 
language  of  the  N.T.  "The  Scriptural 
conception  of  the  verb  is  not  of  ap- 
peasing one  who  is  angry  with  a 
personal  feeling  against  the  offender, 
but  of  altering  the  character  of  that 
which,  from  without,  occasions  a 
necessary  alienation  and  interposes 
an  incAatable  obstacle  to  fellowship." 
Westcott. 

18.  being  tempted.  For  the  ex- 
pression, cp.  Luke  xxii.  28,  "ye  are 
they  which  have  continued  with 
me  in  my  temptations."  It  is  one 
of  the  standing  difficulties  of  trans- 
lation in  the  N.T.  that  the  Greeks 
had,  and  we  have  not,  one  and  the 
same  set  of  words  for  "  temptation  " 
and  "  trial."  We  have  to  choose  be- 
tween the  two  aspects,  the  Greek 
often  (as  here)  combines  them :  cp. 
James  i.  2,  12,  13. 


General  Note  on  II.  5-18. 

The  writer  has  now  fully  brought  us  in  sight  of  his  purpose.  In  com- 
paring the  New  Dispensation  with  the  Old  as  a  Revelation,  it  was  necessary 
only  to  dwell  on  the  ineffable  superiority  of  the  Intermediary,  whether  in 
His  eternal  being  or  in  the  position  claimed  for  Him  by  Prophecy  as  the 


III.  1]  HEBREWS  19 

Incarnate  Son.  This  part  of  the  subject  is  summed  up  for  the  time  in  the 
hortatory  passage  in  ch.  ii.  1-4,  which  enforces  the  importance  of  the  message 
and  the  adequacy  of  the  evidence  on  which  it  rests. 

But  another  view  of  the  Dispensation  was  suggested  from  the  first  in 
i.  3.  It  is  not  only  a  Revelation  but  also  a  scheme  of  salvation.  Its 
Intermediary  is  not  a  Teacher  only,  but  also  a  Reconciler.  This  part  of  the 
subject  will  have  the  larger  place  in  the  Epistle,  and  the  verses  5-18  are 
meant  as  an  introduction  to  it.  They  deal  not  with  external  evidence,  but 
with  more  delicate  ground,  the  inner  appeal  to  the  heart  of  man.  They 
meet  at  once  the  great  difficulty  which  haunted  the  Jewish  mind.  A 
Revealer  might  be  of  a  higher  race  than  those  to  whom  he  brought  the 
Revelation :  but  a  Reconciler  must  stand  by  their  side.  In  this  aspect 
therefore  the  new  Revelation  involved  a  true  Incarnation — the  assumption, 
that  is,  of  human  nature  with  its  liability  to  pain  [and  death.  But  a 
Messiah  at  once  Divine  and  who  could  suffer  and  die  was  to  the  Jews  an 
ever-recurring  "  stumblingblock  "  (see  note  on  ix.  15).  The  writer  meets 
the  difficulty  not  by  apology  ;  still  less  by  minimizing  the  truth.  He  claims 
it  boldly  as  the  feature  of  the  Revelation  which  most  commends  it  to  the 
reason  as  well  as  to  the  feelings.  Nothing  else  would  have  "become" 
(beseemed)  God ;  for  nothing  else  would  have  met  the  needs  of  humanity. 
He  discovers  it  as  the  latent  truth  behind  the  great  recognition  in  Ps.  viii. 
of  the  imperial  destiny  of  man  :  it  is  a  destiny  for  man,  and  therefore  for 
man  through  his  Representative  ("even  Jesus"),  to  be  won  through 
humiliation  :  "a  little  lower  than  the  angels"  first;  then  "for  the  suffering 
of  death  crovmed  with  glory."  Two  special  reasons  are  suggested  why  the 
"grace  of  God"  has  chosen  this  path:  (1)  that  men  might,  through  this 
death  of  their  Representative,  be  freed  themselves  from  the  paralyzing 
"  fear  of  death  "  :  (2)  that  their  Reconciling  High  Priest,  sharing  their  con- 
ditions, might  be  capable  of  sympathizing  with  them  and  therefore  of  being 
trusted  by  them. 

III.  1.    Christ  at  once  the  Moses  and  the  Aaron  of 
THE  New  Dispensation. 

III.  1  Wherefore,  holy  brethren,  partakers  of  a  heavenly 
calling,  consider  the  Apostle  and  High  Priest  of  our  con- 
fession, even  Jesus ; 

A  great  part  of  the  Second  Chapter,  though  (as  we  have  seen)  thoroughly 
germane  to  the  purpose  of  the  Epistle,  has  left  to  some  extent  its  formal 
order,  viz.  the  comparison  of  the  two  Dispensations.  With  the  beginning  of 
ch.  iii.  we  return  to  the  main  course. 

The  address  ("holy  brethren,  partakers  of  a  heavenly  calling")  gathers 
up  the  ideas  of  the  preceding  passage.  The  persons  addressed  are  "brethren," 
brethren  of  the  Christ  (ii.  10, 12, 17);  "holy,"  i.e.  "sanctified"  or  consecrated 
(ii.  11),  a  consecrated  people  Uke  their  Hebrew  forefathers  ;  "called  from 
heaven,"  even  as  were  they,  only  more  directly  and  effectively  than  they. 

2—2 


20  HEBREWS  [in.  2-6 

And  so  the  appeal,  too,  looks  both  backwards  and  forwards :  "consider," 
i.e.  "  set  all  your  thoughts  upon."  It  is  worth  noting  (in  a  writer  so  careful 
of  words  and,  even  under  apparent  freedom,  so  intent  on  symmetry  of  form) 
that  the  same  word  recurs  in  exhortation  in  ch.  x.  24,  where  the  practical 
part  of  the  Epistle  is  beginning.  It  seems  chosen  to  give  a  framework  to 
the  doctrinal  part  and  to  the  practical:  here  "set  all  your  thoughts  on  Him 
"Who  replaces  completely  the  Law-giver  and  the  High  Priest  of  the  Old 
Testament":  there  "set  all  your  thoughts  upon  one  another,"  keep  yoi\r 
Christian  faith  pure  and  ahve  by  making  it  unselfish. 

The  words  sum  up  the  argument  which  is  to  come;  and  in  so  doing 
they  mark  the  double  course  which  from  this  point  onwards  it  is  to  take : 
"  the  Apostle  and  High  Priest  of  our  Confession,"  i.e.  at  once  the  Envoy 
and  the  High  Priest,  Whom  we  Christians  (in  contrast  with  the  Jews) 
acknowledge.  The  Christ  has  been  set  forth  as  the  Medium  of  the  new 
Revelation,  and  compared  in  this  respect  with  the  Prophets  and  the 
Angelic  Messengers  who  conveyed  God's  word  in  the  Old  Dispensation. 
But  another  aspect  of  this  has  come  to  the  writer.  In  the  Revelations  of 
the  Old  Covenant,  if  "  God  spake "  through  an  angel,  man  heard  through 
the  human  intermediary.  And  once  more,  in  the  greatest  moment  of  the 
Revelation,  the  giving  of  the  Law  at  Sinai,  this  human  medium  was  re- 
presented not  by  one  person,  but  by  two ;  Moses,  the  Envoy  or  Ambassador 
(this  is  clearly  the  meaning  here  of  "  Apostle  " ;  it  recalls  the  frequent  use 
in  the  Old  Testament  of  the  verb  ano(TTi\\(iv,  "  to  send,"  of  the  "  mission  " 
of  Moses)  and  Aaron  the  High  Priest.  Christ,  then,  is  in  the  Christian 
confession  the  Bearer  of  the  Message,  the  Law-giver,  the  Leader  in  the 
great  deliverance,  the  supreme  Teacher  and  Ruler.  And  He  is  also  the 
High  Priest  Both  aspects  of  the  Messiah  have  been  recognized  already. 
They  are  now  set  forth  in  words  and  to  be  worked  out  successively. 

First,  He  is  the  Moses  of  the  New  Dispensation.  This  is  the  point  of 
the  entire  passage  from  iii.  2  to  iv.  13;  but  it  falls  into  two  parts;  the 
first  from  iii  2  to  6. 

III.  2-6.    "The  Moses" — but  how  much  greater 
THAN  Moses! 

2  who  was  faithful  to  him  that  ^appointed  him,  as  also 

3  was  Moses  in  all  ^his  house.  For  he  hath  been  counted 
worthy  of  more  glory  than  Moses,  by  so  much  as  he 
that  ^  built  the  house  hath  more  honour  than  the  house. 

4  For  every  house  is  builded  by  some  one ;   but  he  that 

5  ^  built  all  things  is  God.  And  Moses  indeed  was  faithful  in 
all  ^his  house  as  a  servant,  for  a  testimony  of  those  things 

6  which  were  afterwards  to  be  spoken ;  but  Christ  as  a  son, 
over  ^his  house  ;  whose  house  are  we,  if  we  hold  fast  our 
boldness  and  the  glorying  of  our  hope  firm  unto  the  end. 

*  Gr.  made.       ^  That  is,  God't  house.    See  Numb.  xii.  7.       •  Or,  established 


III.  2-6] 


HEBREWS 


21 


General  Note  on  III.  2-6. 

Moses  is  exalted  in  two  respects.  It  is  testified  of  him — the  writer  says 
— that  he  was  "  faithful  in  all  God's  household" :  he  was  faithful,  that  is,  and 
not  (as,  it  is  implied,  might  be  the  case  with  other  prophets)  in  some 
department,  but  in  the  whole  organization  of  God's  ancient  church.  But 
the  Christ  has  honour  far  higher.     For 

(1)  Moses,  high  as  his  place  is,  was  a  servant  "in  the  house" — part  of 
the  household.  A  house  or  household  implies  some  one  who  built  or 
equipped  it.  That  can  be  found  ultimately  in  God  alone.  Christ  is  "  over 
the  house,"  not  a  servant,  but  Son  of  the  Builder  and  Master. 

(2)  The  work  of  Moses  was  provisional,  prospective,  tjrpical:  "for  a 
testimony  of  those  things  which  were  afterwards  to  be  spoken."  The  Law, 
that  is,  looked  forward  to,  and  made  place  for,  the  fuller  Revelation  yet  to 
come. 


2.  The  particular  expressions  are 
due  to  things  actually  said  of  Moses 
in  1  Sam.  xii.  6  (R.V.),  "It  is  the  Lord 
that  appointed  (it  is  the  same  verb 
that  is  translated  "appointed  "  here) 
Moses  and  Aaron,"  and  in  Numb.  xii. 
7,  "  My  servant  Moses  is  not  so  :  he 
is  faithful  in  all  my  house."  But  it 
is  one  of  the  instances  where  it  is 
natural  to  imagine  that  there  may 
be  also  in  the  background  some  say- 
ing of  our  Lord's  about  Himself 
which  was  in  the  common  conscious- 
ness of  writer  and  readers.  A  similar 
instance  occurs  perhaps  in  ch.  v.  4, 
"  He  glorified  not  Himself,"  as  com- 
pared with  John  viii.  54,  xvii.  1,  &c. 
The  idea  of  His  "  faithfulness  to  Him 
that  appointed  Him"  is  well  illus- 
trated by  such  passages  as  John  v. 
19,  20,  36,  43,  vii.  16,  viii.  28,  xii. 
49. 

3.  For,  depends  not  on  o.  2,  but 
on  ».  1,  "Consider — set  your  thoughts 
on,  the  Envoy  whom  we  confess,  for 
He  is  a  greater  Moses." 

4.  luilt.    See  on  ch.  ix.  2.    The 


word  covers  equipping  or  constitut- 
ing, as  well  as  building,  and  is  suit- 
able therefore  here,  where  evidently 
we  are  to  think  of  the  household  as 
much  as  of  the  house. 

6.  boldness.  Cp.  ch.  iv.  16,  x.  19, 
35.  The  word  properly  means  "  out- 
spokenness " :  it  was  then  genera- 
lized to  mean  "  freedom  of  manner," 
"boldness";  but  usually  some  sense 
of  "  freedom  of  speech  "  is  included  : 
see,  for  instance.  Acts  iv.  13.  In 
Eph.  iii.  12,  1  John  ii.  28,  iii.  21,  iv. 
17,  V.  14,  and  in  three  at  least  of  the 
four  passages  in  which  it  occurs  in 
this  Epistle  (the  present  one  and  in 
V.  16,  x.  19),  it  is  used  of  freedom  of 
attitude  towards  God :  but  here 
again  freedom  of  utterance,  the  free- 
dom of  one  who  can  cry  "Abba, 
Father,"  is  specially  in  view. 

glorying  of  our  hope ;  hope,  and 
hope  that  as  St  Paul  says  (Rom. 
V.  5)  "putteth  not  to  shame" — not 
crossed  by  misgivings,  but  such  as 
expresses  itself  in  utterances  of  joy 
and  confidence. 


The  second  part  of  the  passage  iii  7-iv.  13  is,  in  form,  hortative.  It 
presses  home  the  lesson  of  the  second  great  comparison,  of  Christ  with 
Moses,  as  ch.  ii.  1-4  pressed  that  of  the  first,  of  Christ  with  the  angels. 
It  does  this  in  the  words  of  Ps.  xcv. 


22 


HEBREWS 


[ill.  7-19 


III.  7-19.    Psalm  xcv.  as  a  warning. 

7  Wherefore,  even  as  the  Holy  Ghost  saith, 

To-day  if  ye  shall  hear  his  voice, 

8  Harden  not  your  hearts,  as  in  the  provocation. 

Like  as  in  the  day  of  the  temptation  in  the  wilderness, 

9  ^Wherewith  your  fathers  tempted  me  by  proving  me. 
And  saw  my  works  forty  years. 

10  Wherefore  I  was  displeased  with  this  generation, 
And  said.  They  do  always  err  in  their  heart : 
But  they  did  not  know  my  ways ; 

11  As  I  sware  in  my  wrath, 

2  They  shall  not  enter  into  my  rest 


J  Or,  Where 

7.  Wherefore.  That  is,  because 
of  the  if  in  ».  6 ;  "  seeing  that  our 
position,  great  as  it  is,  is  conditional 
on  our  constancy." 

even  as.  Notice  that  the  corre- 
spondent clause  to  this  "as"  does 
not  come  till  v.  12,  at  the  end  of  the 
quotation,  "Wherefore,  even  as 
the  Holy  Ghost  saith... take  heed, 
brethren." 

the  Holy  Ghost  saith.  An  habitual 
way  of  speaking  of  the  words  of 
Scripture;  cp.  ch.  ix.  8,  x.  15.  In 
quoting  this  same  passage  in  ch.  iv. 
4,  the  writer  uses  the  undefined 
"  He,"  which  is  commented  on  above, 
ch.  ii.  5. 

To-day  if  ye  shall  hear.  "  Do  not 
repeat  your  forefathers'  sin.  If  God's 
voice  comes  to  your  ears  in  some 
fresh  Revelation  to-day,  listen  to  it." 
A.V.  has  "if  ye  will  hear."  In  that 
case  "hear"  must  be  taken  in  the 
sense  of  "  hearken  to,"  but  the  clause 
is  then  open  to  two  constructions : 
it  may  mean  either  "if  you  desire 
to  hearken  "  or  (as  an  exclamation) 
"Oh,  if  you  would  hearken !"  In  the 
Psalm  itself,  R.V.  takes  this  latter 


2  Gr.  If  they  shall  enter. 

meaning,    translating   "To-day,   oh 
that  ye  would  hear  his  voice  ! " 

8.  provocation... temptation.  The 
translation  severally,  first  in  the 
Greek  and  then  in  the  English  ver- 
sions of  Ps.  xcv.,  of  the  Heb.  Meribah, 
and  Massah  (Bxod.  xvii.  7,  Numb. 
XX.  13). 

9.  by  proving  me.  A.V.  "proved 
me."  The  diff'erence  between  the 
two  versions  is  one  of  reading.  The 
Received  Text,  translated  in  A.  v.,  has 
a  verb  and  a  pronoun  "  proved  me," 
which  is  in  accordance  with  the  read- 
ing of  the  Psalm,  both  in  the  Hebrew 
and  in  the  LXX.  R.V.,  following 
the  best  MSS  of  the  New  Testament, 
is  translating  iv  doKifxaa-ia,  "  in  prov- 
ing." If  we  accept  this  reading,  the 
sense  is  still  open  to  question — "  in 
proving"  whom?  R.V.  answers  by 
inserting,  both  after  "tempted"  and 
after  "  proving,"  me  (the  italics  shew 
that  in  neither  case  is  it  in  the  Greek), 
The  sense  then  becomes  substantially 
the  same  as  in  A.V.  But  it  is  also 
taken  (as  by  Mr  Rendall)  to  mean 
"  in  their  proving,"  i.e.  when  God  was 
proving  them.     This    is    in    corre- 


III.  7-1 9J 


HEBREWS 


23 


spondence  with  the  iisual  meaning 
of  BoKinaa-ia,  which  was  used  of  the 
examination  of  a  candidate's  quahfi- 
cation  for  oflBce,  and  it  also  suits 
Ps.  Ixxxi.  8,  where  God  is  represented 
as  saying  "I  proved  thee  (the  cog- 
nate verb)  at  the  waters  of  strife." 
It  is  a  real  difficulty.  Neither  inter- 
pretation of  fV  boKipLaa-ia  is  wholly 
satisfactory,  and  yet  it  is  difficult  to 
understand  how  it  got  possession  of 
the  text  if  it  is  not  genuine. 

10.  But  they  did  not.  R.V. 
rightly  indicates  that  this  is  not  a 
continuation  of  the  preceding  clause, 
but  a  statement  of  a  further  fact. 


parallel  not  to  "  they  do  always  err," 
but  to  "  I  was  displeased  and  said." 
"  They  "  is,  in  the  Greek,  an  emphatic 
pronoun,  "They  on  their  part" — 
"though  I  was  displeased,  &c.,  they 
on  their  part  did  not  learn  my 
ways." 

11.  TTiep  shall  not  enter.  It  is 
pointed  out  in  the  margin  that  the 
literal  translation  of  the  Greek  is 
"  If  they  shall  enter."  It  is  an  idio- 
matic use  for  a  strong  negative  found 
in  the  LXX  and  in  one  case  in  New 
Testament  Greek,  Mark  viii.  12, 
"There  shall  no  sign  be  given,"  lit 
"  if  a  sign  shall  be  given." 


12  Take  heed,  brethren,  lest  haply  there  shall  be  in  any  one 
of  you  an  evil  heart  of  unbelief,  in  falling  away  from  the 

13  living  God  :  but  exhort  one  another  day  by  day,  so  long  as 
it  is  called  To-day  ;  lest  any  one  of  you  be  hardened  by  the 

14  deceitfulness  of  sin :    for  we  are  become  partakers  ^of 
Christ,  if  we  hold  fast  the  beginning  of  our  confidence  firm 

15  unto  the  end  :  while  it  is  said. 

To-day  if  ye  shall  hear  his  voice, 

Harden  not  your  hearts,  as  in  the  provocation. 

16  For  who,  when  they  heard,  did  provoke  ?    Nay,  did  not  all 

17  they  that  came  out  of  Egypt  by  Moses  ?  And  with  whom  was 
he  displeased  forty  years  ?  Was  it  not  with  them  that  sinned, 

18  whose  -carcases  fell  in  the  wilderness?  And  to  whom  sware 
he  that  they  should  not  enter  into  his  rest,  but  to  them  that 

19  were  disobedient  ?    And  we  see  that  they  were  not  able  to 
enter  in  because  of  unbelief. 


^  Or,  with 

12.  Take  heed.  Here,  as  has 
been  pointed  out,  we  come  to  the 
clause  which  answers  to  the  "  Even 
as,  &c."  oivv.  7-11. 

lest  there  shall  be.  On  the  one 
side  the  Greek  idiom  implies  that 
the  danger  is  a  real  one :  on  the 
other  it  is  put  as  a  danger  for  the 


^  Gr,  livibs. 

future,  not  as  a  charge  imputed  at 
present. 

an  evil  heart  of  unhelief.  Is  it 
possible  that  the  "evil  heart"  is  a 
momentary  recalling  of  the  "  honest 
and  good  heart "  of  the  Parable  ?  In 
any  case  the  conjunction  of  the 
"evil  heart"  with  the  "falling away" 


24 


HEBREWS 


[ill.  7-19 


reproduces  the  "  they  do  err  in  their 
heart "  of  the  Psalm. 

the  living  God.  See  the  note  on 
ch.  ix.  14.  It  seems  here  a  reminis- 
cence of  the  O.T.  use  (see  e.g.  Deut.  v. 
26,  Josh.  iii.  10).  The  sin  contem- 
plated is  apostasy  ;  and  so  is  parallel 
to  the  sin  of  their  ancestors,  who  de- 
serted the  living  and  true  God  for 
dumb  idols. 

13.  exhort  one  another.  Cp.  x. 
25,  which  seems  to  recall  this  passage. 
There  is  the  same  putting  together 
of  the  two  thoughts  of  an  approach- 
ing crisis  which  tries  faith,  and  of 
the  strength  to  be  found  in  the 
mutual  influences  of  the  Christian 
society. 

so  long  as  it  is  called  To-day  ;  im- 
plying the  thought  that  a  time  was 
near  when  "To-day"  would  be  no 
longer  applicable  ;  the  day  for  hear- 
ing God's  voice  would  be  past. 

the  deceitfubiess.  More  exactly 
"a  deceit,"  one  of  the  many  delusions 
by  which  sin  closes  the  ears  of  the 
heart 

1 4.  partakers  of  {or,  with)  Christ. 
Both  the  history  of  the  Greek  word 
and  the  usage  of  the  N.T.  seem  to  be 
consistent  with  either  way  of  taking 
it,  whether  as  =  "  sharers  in  Christ," 
or  as  =  "  partners  with  Christ."  The 
former  would  suit  best  with  the 
various  Pauline  figures  which  de- 
scribe mystically  the  relation  of  the 
believer  to  Christ :  "  ye  are  the  body 
of  Christ  and  severally  members 
thereof"  (1  Cor.  xii.  27),  "Christ  in 
you"(Col.  i.  27).  The  latter  is  more  like 
the  figures  of  this  Epistle,  in  which 
Christians  are  the  "brethren  "  of  the 
Christ  (ii.  11),  the  "house"  over 
which  He  presides  as  the  Son  (iii.  7. 
The  likeness  of  the  reservation  in 
that  place,  "if  we  hold  fast  our 
boldness,  &c.,"  looks  as  if  it  was  still 
in  the  writer's   mind).     He  is  the 


"Captain,"  the  "Forerunner"  (ii. 
10,  vi.  20).  The  writer  is  still  domi- 
nated by  the  general  figure  which 
assimilates  Christ  saving  His  people 
to  the  rescue  of  Israel  by  Moses, 
Joshua,  &c. 

if.  The  Greek  marks  a  strong 
emphasis  on  the  "if"  {iavnep) ;  "we 
are  become... on  this  one  condition, 
that,  &c." 

the  beginning  of  our  confidence, 
i.e.  the  confidence  which  we  had  at 
the  beginning.  The  word  rendered 
"  confidence  "  (xi.  1,  "  assurance,"  cp. 
2  Cor.  ix.  4,  xi.  17)  meant  first 
"foundation,"  so  "security";  then 
"sense  of  security,"  "firmness  of 
attitude."  It  is  used  of  the  firmness 
of  soldiers,  or  martyrs. 

15.  while  it  is  said,  &c.  The 
connexion  and  purpose  of  this  clause 
are  not  quite  certain.  It  has  been 
taken  with  what  follows  :  but  in  that 
case  the  "For,"  which  begins  v.  16, 
involves  a  broken  construction  which 
is  without  parallel  in  this  Epistle. 
If  we  take  it  (as  R.V.)  with  the  pre- 
ceding clause  it  is  best  explained  by 
a  comparison  with  ch.  viii.  13,  "in 
that  he  saith,  A  new  covenant,  he  hath 
made  the  first  old,"  i.e.  he  implies 
that  the  first  has  become  old.  So 
here  we  have  "  While  [or,  better,  "  in 
that"]  it  is  said. .  .we  have  become  [or, 
"have  been  made,"  i.e.  "it  is  implied 
that  we  are"]  partners  with  the 
Christ."  The  clause  "  if  we  hold  fast, 
&c.,"  is  apparently  parenthetical,  but 
it  has  its  proper  place,  for  the  meaning 
is  that  the  terms  of  Ps.  xcv.,  addressed 
(as  it  is  assumed  they  are)  to  Chris- 
tians, imply  both  their  place  of  privi- 
lege and  the  risk  expressed  in  the 
words  "  if  only  they  hold  fast,  &c." 

16.  who. . .  ?  did  not  all. . .  ?  The 
A. V.  has  "some  ". . . "  howbeit  not  all," 
and  it  has  no  notes  of  interrogation. 
This  involves  a  diflference    in   the 


IV.  1-10]  HEBREWS  25 

Greek,  but  only  in  the  matter  of  an  had  heard,  provoked,"  were  not  one 
accent  and  of  punctuation,  both  of  or  two,  but  the  mass  of  God's  re- 
which    are    comparatively    modern  deemed  people.    The  lesson  is  that 
additions.     The  text,  as  the  Greeks  even  the  redeemed  could  fall  away, 
wrote  it,  had  neither.     We  are  free  17.    carcases    (literally    "limbs," 
therefore  to  choose  the  form  which  "bones")  fell.    A  verbal  reference 
seems  to  suit  the  sense  best.    Objec-  to  Numb.  xiv.  29. 
tion  has  been  taken  to  the  form          18.    sware  he.    This  threat,  in- 
adopted  by  R.V.  on  the  ground  that  corporated  afterwards  in  Ps.  xcv., 
it  ignores  the  steadfastness  of  Joshua  comes  also  originally  from  Numb.  xiv. 
and  Caleb:  but  this  is  to  expect  of  a  30,   even  to  the  Greek  idiom,  "if 
general  statement  an  irrelevant  ex-  they  shall,"  as  an  equivalent  of  "they 
actness.     The  point  is  that  those  shall  not." 
who  in  the  old  story,  "when  they 

Up  to  this  point  the  writer  has  kept  entirely  to  the  purpose  for  which 
he  first  quoted  Ps.  xcv. ;  viz.  to  remind  them  that  their  forefathers  had 
fallen  away  from  Moses  and  so  forfeited  the  deliverance ;  and  to  draw  the 
moral,  "  Do  not  treat  your  own  greater  Moses  in  the  same  way."  But  from 
this  point,  though  not  dropping  that  thought,  he  is  drawing  towards  a  second 
purpose,  viz.  to  exhibit  the  Psalm  as  witnessing  to  the  truth  that  it  had 
always  been  in  the  counsels  and  promises  of  God  to  give  them  a  "rest"  more 
complete  and  permanent,  more  worthy  of  the  title  "  My  rest "  (a  rest,  that 
is,  perfect  and  eternal  as  that  of  God  Himself)  than  the  rest  which  Joshua 
gave  them  in  Canaan. 


IV.  1-10.    Psalm  xcv.  as  an  assurance  of  a  promise 

WHICH   STILL   HOLDS. 

IV.     1  Let  us  fear  therefore,  lest  haply,  a   promise  being 
left  of  entering  into  his  rest,  any  one  of  you  should  seem 

2  to  have  come  short  of  it.  For  indeed  we  have  had  ^good 
tidings  preached  unto  us,  even  as  also  they :  but  the  word 
of  hearing  did  not  profit  them,  because  ^they  were  not 

3  united  by  faith  with  them  that  heard.  ^For  we  which 
have  believed  do  enter  into  that  rest;  even  as  he  hath 
said, 

As  I  sware  in  my  wrath, 
^They  shall  not  enter  into  my  rest : 
although  the  works  were  finished  from  the  foundation  of 

4  the  world.  For  he  hath  said  somewhere  of  the  seventh 
day  on  this  wise,  And  God  rested  on  the  seventh  day 

5  from  all  his  works ;  and  in  this  place  again, 

*They  shall  not  enter  into  my  rest. 


26 


HEBREWS 


[IV.  1-10 


6  Seeing  therefore  it  remaineth  that  some  should  enter 
thereinto,  and  they  to  whom  ^the  good  tidings  were 
before  preached  failed  to  enter  in  because  of  disobedience, 

7  he  again  defineth  a  certain  day,  ^saying  in  David,  after 
so  long  a  time.  To-day,  as  it  hath  been  before  said, 

To-day  if  ye  shall  hear  his  voice, 
Harden  not  your  hearts. 

8  For  if  ''Joshua  had  given  them  rest,  he  would  not  have 

9  spoken  afterward  of  another  day.    There  remaineth  there- 
10  fore  a  sabbath  rest  for  the  people  of  God.    For  he  that  is 

entered  into  his  rest  hath  himself  also  rested  from  his 
works,  as  God  did  from  his. 

1  Or,  a  gospel  ^  Some  ancient  authorities  read  it  was. 

3  Some  ancient  authorities  read  We  therefore. 

*  Gr.  If  they  shall  enter.  ^  Or,  the  gospel  was 

®  Or,  To-day,  saying  in  David,  after  so  long  a  time,  as  it  hath  been,  <&c. 

'  Gr.  Jesus. 


IV.  1.  therefore,  seeing  what 
happened  to  our  forefathers,  to  so 
many  of  God's  redeemed  people. 

being  left,  i.e.  as  yet  unfulfilled, 
but  still  holding.  This  is  assumed, 
but  is  to  be  explained  in  what 
follows.  The  promise  cannot  have 
failed  in  itself:  but  it  failed  alto- 
gether to  the  first  generation  "be- 
cause of  their  unbelief";  and  it 
failed,  even  when  it  seemed  to  be 
fulfilled,  because  the  rest  which 
Joshua  gave  them  was  inadequate 
and  only  typical.  Yet  it  has  been 
reaflSrmed  in  the  Psalm.  This  is 
the  point  of  v.  14  although  different 
language  is  there  employed. 

should  seem.  It  is  difficult  to 
fix  the  meaning  of  "seem  to  have 
come  short"  as  distinguished  from 
"come  short."  Three  suggestions 
have  been  off'ered,  the  first  perhaps 
the  most  probable :  (1)  that,  like 
"haply,"  it  is  a  mitigating  expres- 
sion; as  we  might  say  "anything 
like  failure"  rather  than  use  the 
word  "failure"   bluntly:    (2)  that 


the  Greek  verb  translated  is  used 
in  a  forensic  sense  and  means  "be 
judged  to  have,  &c.":  (3)  that  it 
means  "seem  to  himself,"  despon- 
dency being  the  source  to  which  the 
vkriter  traces  much  of  the  back- 
sliding. There  is  weight  in  the 
criticism  on  this  last  explanation 
that  "Let  us  fear"  is  an  awkward 
beginning  to  a  sentence  the  true 
purpose  of  which  is  that  they  should 
not  fear.  We  seem  shut  up  to  (1) 
or  (2). 

2.  good  tidings... even  as  also 
they.  What  are  the  good  "tidings"  ? 
Evidently  from  v.  6,  the  promise  of 
a  coming  rest,  implied  in  the  words 
of  Ps.  xcv. :  but  this  is  identified 
first  with  the  promised  entrance 
into  Canaan,  and  secondly  with  the 
promises  of  the  Gospel.  The  choice 
of  the  phrase  "  good  tidings  "  is  due 
to  the  feeling  (so  frequent  in  the 
Epistle  and  which  colours  the  whole 
of  this  passage)  of  the  analogy  be- 
tween the  work  of  Christ  and  that  of 
Moses.  It  is  illustrative  of  the  length 


IV.  1-10] 


HEBREWS 


27 


to  which  the  writer  goes  in  the 
desire  to  put  himself  at  the  point 
of  view  of  those  whom  he  would 
persuade  that,  so  far  as  words  go, 
he  makes  the  Gospel  deliverance 
seem  a  repetition  of  the  deliverance 
from  Egypt  rather  than  the  deliver- 
ance from  Egypt  an  anticipation  of 
the  Gospel.  See  the  note  on  ii.  16, 
"seed  of  Abraham." 

the  tcord  of  hearing.  Lit.  "  the 
word  of  the  hearing,"  i.e.  the  pur- 
port of  the  message  which  they  heard. 
because  they  were  not  united. 
This  is  a  translation  of  the  best 
supported  reading;  but  it  involves 
serious  difficulties:  (1)  It  would 
follow  from  it  that  "them  that 
heard"  means  "them  that  heark- 
ened," i.e.  the  faithful  few  who  heard 
and  obeyed.  This  would  almost 
force  us  to  give  the  same  sense  to 
"hear"  in  the  quotations  from  Ps. 
xcv. ;  and  also  to  suppose  a  refer- 
ence (which  at  the  place  seemed 
irrelevant  and  unlikely)  in  iii.  16  to 
Joshua  and  Caleb.  If  all  this  was 
possible,  it  would  still  be  difficult  to 
give  the  same  sense  to  the  two 
words,  evidently  correspondent  to 
each  other,  in  this  verse,  "hearing" 
and  "heard."  (2)  There  is  the  still 
graver  difficulty  in  the  word  ren- 
dered "united."  It  is  evidently  a 
word  chosen  with  a  purpose :  it 
literally  means  "commingled";  and  it 
is  hard  to  imagine  in  this  connexion 
any  adequate  sense  which  it  could 
have,  whether  literal  or  metaphorical. 
The  only  alternative  (unless  we  sup- 
pose some  more  serious  corruption 
of  the  text)  is  to  accept  the  reading, 
of  less  MS  authority,  which  is  trans- 
lated in  A. v.,  and  which  makes  the 
participle  singular  instead  of  plural 
and  a  nominative  in  agreement  with 
"  word."  It  may  then  be  rendered 
either  "because  it  was  not  assimi- 


lated [as  in  digestion]  by  faith  in 
those  that  heard  it "  or  "  because  it 
was  not  commingled  [as  two  ingre- 
dients, both  of  which  are  necessary 
to  the  eflfect,  are  mingled  in  a 
potion]  with  faith  in  those  that 
heard  it." 

3.  This  verse  is  in  intimate  rela 
tion  to  the  statement  in  v.  2  that 
they  have  had  good  tidings  preached 
to  them  even  as  their  forefathers 
had  had.  With  the  reading  in  the 
text  ("For")  it  is  treated  as  a  justifi- 
cation of  that  statement :  "  We  have 
had  good  tidings  preached  to  us,  I 
say ;  for  we  are  on  our  way,  we  that 
have  accepted  the  Christian  belief, 
to  the  special  and  perfect  rest  of 
which  Ps.  xcv.  spoke."  With  the 
alternative  reading  mentioned  in 
the  margin  ("Therefore")  it  would 
be  treated  merely  as  resumptive, 
repeating  the  statement  in  other 
words  after  an  interruption. 

we  which  have  believed.  We 
lose  in  the  English  the  correspon- 
dence, marked  in  Greek,  with  "faith" 
in  V.  2 :  "we  which  have  had  the 
'faith'  that  they  lacked." 

although  the  works  were  finished. 
Notice  (1)  that  the  threat  that  some 
should  not  enter  is  taken  as  con- 
structively a  promise  that  some 
should  enter  ;  (2)  that  the  clause 
introduced  by  "  although  "  is  a  com- 
ment on  the  phrase  "tw?/  rest": 
"God's  rest"  it  says,  "although  tfie 
works  spoken  of  in  Gen.  ii.  2  date 
from  the  creation  of  the  world" — 
we  have,  therefore,  to  put  together 
Gen.  ii.  2  and  Ps.  xcv.,  and  from  the 
comparison  of  these  it  follows  that  a 
rest  worthy  to  be  called  "God's  rest," 
and  therefore  analogous  to  His  rest, 
was  still  promised  to  men. 

4.  somewhere,  i.e.  in  Gen.  ii.  2. 
For  this  indefinite  mode  of  quota- 
tion see  on  ii.  6. 


28 


HEBREWS 


[IV.  11-13 


6.  it  remaineth.  See  v.  9  and 
ch.  X.  26.  It  is  a  special  word  of 
the  Epistle :  "  it  is  reserved,"  said  of 
something  purposed,  but  not  yet 
realized- 

because  of  disobedience  (dirfidfia). 
Cp.  iii.  19,  "because  of  unbelief" 
(dina-Tia).  The  two  words  are 
treated  as  interchangeable:  they 
are  two  sides  of  the  same  mental 
attitude.  Cp.  the  similar  inter- 
change in  Rom.  xi.  20,  2.3,  30,  32. 

7.  in  David,  "in  the  person  of 
David,"  i.e.  of  the  Psalmist.  It  is  the 
same  preposition  as  in  ch.  i.  1,  "in 
[i.e.  through,  in  the  person  of]  the 
prophets."  Westcott  warns  us  that 
this  use  of  a  current  method  of  re- 
ference cannot  be  taken  to  decide 
by  itself  the  date  and  authorship  of 
a  particular  Psalm. 

after  so  long  a  time,  i.e.  so  many 
years  after.  The  point  is  the  length 
of  time  that  had  elapsed  between  the 
Exodus  and  the  warning  voice  of 
the  Psalmist.  The  later  the  Psalm 
the  stronger  the  argument 

8.  if  Joshua  had  given  them 
rest.  There  is  reference  no  doubt 
to  the  frequent  repetition  in  the 
Book  of  Joshua  of  this  phrase  as 


describing  his  work,  and  in  the 
Pentateuch  as  anticipating  his  work. 
See  e.g.  Deut.  xxv.  19,  "when  the 
Lord  thy  God  hath  given  thee  rest"; 
Josh.  xxii.  4,  "Now  the  Lord  thy 
God  hath  given  rest  unto  your 
brethren  as  he  spake  unto  them." 
It  is  the  same  phrase  in  the  Greek 
as  here. 

9.  sabbath  rest.  The  writer  sub- 
stitutes "keeping  of  sabbath"  for  the 
simple  "  rest "  (the  word  of  the  Psalm, 
and  the  one  which  he  had  himself 
used  before),  in  order  to  emphasize 
the  point  that  the  rest  promised 
("/n?/  rest")  is  a  rest  like  to  that 
spoken  of  in  Gen.  ii.,  of  which  the 
sabbath  rest  was  the  commemora- 
tion. But  it  also  contributes  to  the 
general  thought  of  the  Epistle.  The 
Sabbath  as  well  as  other  institutions 
of  Judaism  had  its  typical  and  pro- 
phetic aspect.  It  helps  to  this  that 
the  word  for  the  "people  of  God"  is 
the  word  which  belongs  to  the 
Jewish  people,  the  people  of  the  Old 
Covenant,  and  is  transferred  to  God's 
people  of  the  New. 

10.  /m  res^,  i.e.  God's  rest — a  rest 
like  God's  "  sabbath  rest." 


IV.  11-13.    Warnings  of  Scripture  not  to  be  slighted. 

11  Let  us  therefore  give  diligence  to  enter  into  that  rest, 
that  no  man  fall  ^  after  the  same  example  of  disobedi- 

12  ence.  For  the  word  of  God  is  living,  and  active,  and 
sharper  than  any  two-edged  sword,  and  piercing  even  to 
the  dividing  of  soul  and  spirit,  of  both  joints  and  marrow, 
and  quick  to  discern  the  thoughts  and  intents  of  the 

13  heart.  And  there  is  no  creature  that  is  not  manifest  in 
his  sight:  but  all  things  are  naked  and  laid  open  before 
the  eyes  of  him  with  whom  we  have  to  do. 


1  Or,  into    Gr.  in. 


IV.  11-13] 


HEBREWS 


29 


11,  that  no  man  fall  after 
(marg.  into)  the  same  example.  The 
Greek  admits  of  either  rendering. 
For  the  absolute  iise  of  "to  fall," 
cp.  Rom.  xi.  22.  It  is  opposed  to 
"to  stand,"  1  Cor.  x.  12,  "Let  him 
that  thinketh  he  standeth  take  heed 
lest  he  fall" 

12.  the  icord  of  God  is  living : 
the  "word"  of  com^e  not  in  the 
theological  sense  of  John  i.  1,  but 
=  the  "utterance  of  God,"  i.e.  the 
warnings,  promises,  teaching  of  Holy 
Scripture.  For  a  similar  personifi- 
cation, cp.  possibly  1  Pet.  i.  23,  "  the 
word  of  God  which  liveth  and  a- 
bideth"  (some  commentators  on  that 
passage,  as  Hort,  take  "which  liveth, 
&c."  in  construction  with  "God," 
not  with  "  the  word  of  God ") :  cp. 
also  the  epithet  in  Acts  vii.  38, 
"living  oracles."  Notice  also  that 
it  is  a  transference  of  a  standing 
epithet  of  God  Himself,  "  the  living 
God":  His  utterance  shares  His 
attribute.  It  is  pertinent  to  observe 
that  before  the  passage  closes  we 
have  returned  from  God's  utter- 
ance to  God  Himself,  v.  13.  With 
the  figure  which  follows,  cp.  Rev. 
i.  16,  "out  of  his  mouth  went  a 
sharp  two-edged  sword,"  and  Eph. 
vi.  17,  "the  sword  of  the  Spirit, 
which  is  the  word  of  God."  The 
special  power  of  God's  word  which 
is  in  view  here  is  its  power  on  the 
conscience,  its  power  to  "lay  open 
the  innermost  depths  of  human 
nature"  (Westcott). 

A  good  comment  on  the  whole 
description    may  be    found  in  the 
familiar    lines    of    the     Christian 
Year  (St  Bartholomew's  Day): 
Eye  of  God's  word !  where'er  we  turn 

Ever  upon  us !  thy  keen  gaze 
Can  all  the  depths  of  sin  discern, 

Unravel  every  bosom's  maze. 
Who  that  hath  felt  thy  glance  of 
dread 


Thrill  through  his  heart's  remotest 
cells, 
About  his  path,  about  his  bed, 

Can  doubt  what  Spirit  in  thee 
dwells  ? 

both  joints  and  m,arrow.  There 
is  a  slight  alteration  introduced  here 
in  the  R.V.  which  may  escape  notice, 
but  which  points  the  way  to  an  im- 
portant change  of  sense.  It  has  sub- 
stituted "of  both  joints  and  marrow" 
for  "and  of  the  joints  and  marrow" 
(A. v.):  that  is,  it  indicates  that  "of 
both  joints  and  marrow"  is  not  of  a 
seijarate  and  added  process,  but  is  a 
metaphorical  expression  carrying  us 
back  to  the  figure  of  the  sword ;  and 
throwing  light  on  the  preceding 
phrase.  The  writer  must  speak  not 
of  dividing  soul  from  spirit,  any 
more  than  he  speaks  of  dividing 
(which  would  not  be  intelligible) 
joints  from  marrow,  but  of  dividing, 
piercing  soul  and  spirit, — soul,  that 
is,  and  the  soul  of  the  soul,  the  soul 
to  its  inmost  and  most  spiritual  part, 
as  the  sword  might  be  said  to  find 
its  way  through  the  joints  even  to 
the  very  marrow  within  the  bone. 

13.  his.. .him.  We  have  passed 
from  God's  word  to  God  Himself 

laid  open.  It  is  literally  "gripped 
by  the  neck."  The  verb  {rpaxn- 
\iC(iv,  from  Tpaxri\os,  the  neck  or 
throat)  was  certainly  used  in  the 
language  of  the  wrestling-school,  for 
"to  collar";  possibly  also  in  that  of 
sacrifice,  of  seizing  an  animal  in  order 
to  expose  its  throat  to  the  knife. 
The  translation  here  of  A.V.  "open" 
and  R.V.  "laid  open"  is  meant  to 
follow  the  latter  use ;  but  it  is  safer 
to  take  the  first.  It  means  then 
(to  drop  or  change  the  metaphor) 
"mastered  by,"  "at  the  mercy  of." 

with  whom  we  have  to  do.  Lit. 
"to  whom  our  account  is  [to  be 
rendered}" 


30  HEBREWS  [iv.  14 

The  long  hortatory  passage  which  has  intervened  between  iii.  6  and 
iv.  14,  ending  as  it  does  in  this  highly  wrought  and  impressive  description 
of  Holy  Scripture  as  the  Judge  of  the  conscience,  suggests  in  itself  that  we 
are  passing  from  one  stage  of  the  argument  to  another,  and  to  one  which 
touches  more  closely  the  moral  nature.  The  Epistle  opened  as  though  the 
comparison  of  the  Old  and  New  Dispensations  was  to  be  a  comparison  of 
them  as  Revelations.  In  dealing  with  that  aspect  of  them  the  writer 
dwelt  on  the  form  rather  than  the  contents,  on  the  personality  of  the 
Messenger  rather  than  the  substance  of  the  message.  This  part  of  the 
subject  reached  its  main  expression  in  the  early  verses  of  ch.  iii.  in 
which  the  Christ  was  set  forth  as  "  greater  than  Moses,"  Moses,  the  Law- 
giver and  supreme  Teacher,  the  Leader  in  what  to  Old  Testament 
writers  is  "salvation,"  viz.  the  deliverance  from  Egypt.  But  it  has  been 
indicated  also  from  the  beginning  that  a  gi'eat  part  of  the  comparison  was 
to  lie  in  the  provision  made  in  the  two  Revelations  severally  for  that  free 
access  of  the  soul  of  man  to  God  which  is  the  end  of  Revelation,  and  which 
it  is  the  idea  of  priesthood  and  sacrifice  to  restore.  In  i.  3  we  read  that  the 
Intermediary  of  the  second  Revelation  "  made  purification  "  of  human  sin 
before  He  "sat  down  on  the  right  hand  of  God's  Majesty."  In  ii.  17  it  was 
explained  that  the  sufiicient  cause  for  the  real  assumption  by  the  Christ  of 
human  flesh  with  all  its  liabilities  of  pain  and  death,  which  was  the  article 
of  the  Christian  Faith  most  diflBcult  to  Jewish  thought,  was  "  that  He  might 
be  a  High  Priest  compassionate  and  trustworthy."  This  part  of  the  subject 
is  to  occupy  the  next  six  chapters.  We  turn  to  it  in  iv.  14.  The  key  is  the 
second  expression  of  iii.  1,  "the  High  Priest  of  our  confession."  We  are 
to  "  hold  fast  our  confession  "  in  this  respect,  to  recognize  Him  Who  is  our 
greater  Aaron  as  well  as  our  greater  Moses.  The  tone  of  exhortation  is 
continued  from  the  preceding  passage,  though  a  new  reason  is  now  assigned 
for  the  exhortation  and  (as  is  also  usual)  through  the  exhortation  the 
argument  is  carried  further. 

IV.  14.    "The  Greater  Aaron"  {see  iii.  1).    The  High 
Priest,  human  at  once  and  superhuman. 

14  Having  then  a  great  high  priest  who  hath  passed  through 
the  heavens,  Jesus  the  Son  of  God,  let  us  hold  fast  our 
confession. 

14.    then.    As  has  been  said  this  "having  a  high  priest":  it  belongs 

is  the  moment  of  transition  from  the  rather   to    the   main   verb  of   the 

consideration  of  Christ  as  the  Re-  sentence,  "let  us  hold  fast."    That 

vealer,  Law-giver,  Leader,  to  the  con-  is  represented  as  a  conclusion  from 

sideration  of  Him  as  the  High  Priest,  all  that  has  been  said,  but  especially 

It  is  in  accordance  with  the  habit  of  from  the  last  thought,  viz.  of  the 

the  writer  (cp.  especially  i.  4,  iii.  2)  soul-revealing,    conscience-dominat- 

to  make  the  transition  informally.  ing  force  of  Holy  Scripture.     The 

The     inferential    particle    "then"  participle    "having,    &c."    adds    a 

must  not  be  taken  too  closely  with  fresh  reason  or  condition  of  such 


IV.  15,  16] 


HEBREWS 


31 


"holding  fast" — one  that  is  to 
expand  into  an  argument  of  six 
chapters,  for  if  the  expressions  of 
this  place  carry  us  back  to  iii.  1,  2, 
it  is  equally  true  that  they  are 
taken  up  again,  as  though  the  period 
was  closed  then,  in  x.  19-23,  "having, 
therefore,  brethren,  &c." 

Having  a  great  high  priest :  more 
literally  "having  for  high  priest  one 
who  is  great,  one  who  has  passed 
through  the  heavens" — one  of  pre- 
eminent rank  and  functions  (see  on 
ch.  X.  21,  "a  great  Priest"),  as  much 
above  Aaron  as  He  has  been  shewn 
to  be  above  Moses.  It  is  the  first 
suggestion  of  the  idea,  to  be  de- 
veloped presently,  of  orders  in  the 
High  Priesthood. 

who  hath  passed  through  the 
Iieacens.  These  words  link  the 
prophecy  of  Ps.  ex.  (already  recalled 
in  i.  3)  of  the  "  sitting  down  at  the 
right  hand  of  the  Majesty  in  the 
heavens "  with  the  image,  just 
coming  into  view,  and  of  which  so 
much  is  to  be  made,  of  the  Levitical 
High  Priest  passing  "within  the 
veil"  on  the  Day  of  Atonement. 

through  the  heavens.  Cp.  the 
expressions  "made  higher  than  the 
heavens,"  ch.  vii.  26,  and  Eph.  iv.  10 
(of  the  Ascension),  "far  above  all 


heavens."  The  idea  of  a  series  of 
"  heavens,"  usually  seven,  one  beyond 
the  other,  which  belonged  to  Eastern 
religions  and  was  worked  out  in 
fanciful  detail  in  Apocalyptic  and 
Rabbinical  literature,  passing  thence 
into  medieval  beliefs,  has  a  foothold 
in  the  phraseology  of  Biblical  writers, 
as  in  these  passages,  in  the  common 
plural  form  "heavens,"in  the  "heaven 
of  heavens"  of  1  Kings  viii.  27  (cp. 
Ps.  cxlviii.  7),  and  most  definitely  in 
the  "third  heaven"  of  2  Cor.  xii.  2; 
but  it  does  not  with  them  go  beyond 
the  desire  to  give  something  like 
perspective  to  unseen  things,  and  to 
indicate  the  remoteness  and  supreme 
Majesty  of  God. 

Jesus  the  Son  of  God.  It  is  noted 
that  of  our  Lord's  titles  in  the  N.T. 
the  one  which  occurs  most  frequently 
in  this  Epistle  is  the  human  name 
"Jesus,"  and  often,  as  here,  with 
emphasis,  and  in  contrast,  expressed 
or  implied,  vnth  the  Divine  dignity. 
"The  true  human  side  of  His  nature," 
the  writer  is  in  eflfect  saying,  "is  as 
essential  to  the  purpose  as  the  Divine 
side."  The  superhuman  dignity,  by 
itself,  would  only  remove  our  High 
Priest  further  from  us;  for  it  would 
destroy  the  possibility  of  sympathy. 


IV.  15,  16.    The  High  Priest  Who  can  sympathize. 

15  For  we  have  not  a  high  priest  that  cannot  be  touched 
with  the  feeling  of  our  infirmities;  but  one  that  hath 
been  in  all  points  tempted  like  as  we  are,  yet  without 

16  sin.  Let  us  therefore  draw  near  with  boldness  to  the 
throne  of  grace,  that  we  may  receive  mercy  and  may  find 
grace  to  help  us  in  time  of  need. 

15.    For.  This  sentence  reinforces  knowledged,  by  urging  that  the  High 

the  reason  already  given  for  holding  Priest  Whom  it  recognizes  is  not 

firmly  to  their  confession,  i.e.  to  the  only  of  surpassing  dignity  and  power. 

Christian  truth  which  they  had  ac-  but  also  able  to  sympathize. 


32 


HEBREWS 


[v.  1-4 


tempted.    See  note  on  ii.  18. 

[j/ef]  without  sin.  As  the  italics 
indicate,  "yef'isan  interpretative  ad- 
dition. The  words  are  literally  "  apart 
from  sin"  and  this  might  mean 
either  (as  both  A.V.  and  R.V.  render 
it)  "without  sin,"  or  perhaps  better 
"  except  in  respect  of  sin."  He  was 
tried  or  "  tempted,"  and  the  trial  or 
temptation  was  like  to  ours  in  all 
points  except  in  its  connexion  with 
sin.  With  us  the  temptation  often 
leads  to  sin,  and  also  its  strength  often 
comes  from  previous  sin.  Neither 
is  true  of  Him.  In  favour  of  the 
second  rendering  it  may  be  said 
(1)  that  it  is  the  most  natural  trans- 
lation of  the  Greek,  requiring 
nothing  to  be  supplied,  and  suiting 
the  order  of  the  sentence,  which 
closely  connects  the  phrase  with  the 
words  which  express  "likeness  in  all 
points":  (2)  that  in  this  way  only  we 
can  take  the  words  in  the  same  way 
here  and  where  they  recur  in  ch.  ix. 
28.  The  context  in  that  place  is 
wholly  diflFerent,  and  the  application 
therefore  of  the  words  is  different; 


but  the  identity  of  other  conditions 
is  there  implied  by  the  words  "ap- 
pear a  second  time"  this  identity 
being  limited  by  the  words  "except 
in  respect  of  sin." 

16.  Let  us... draw  near  {npoa-- 
fpxdfifda) :  as  Vaughan  says,  "  a 
great  word  in  this  Epistle:  cp.  vii. 
25,  X.  1,  2,  xi.  6."  This  is  the  first 
use  of  it,  and  as  "the  throne  of 
grace"  shews,  another  step  towards 
the  figure,  to  be  fully  developed 
presently,  of  the  Day  of  Atonement 
with  its  typical  representation  of 
the  true  answer  to  be  made  to  the 
question,  "How  shall  man  dare  to 
draw  near  to  God?" 

receive  mercy... fiTid  grace.  There 
is  a  contrast  between  "mercy"  (to 
be  shewn  in  forgiveness)  for  the 
past,  and  "grace"  (to  help)  for  the 
future :  possibly  also  between  the 
two  verbs  "receive"  (or  rather, 
"take")  of  opening  the  hand  to 
receive  what  is  offered,  and  "find" 
which  implies  some  further  coopera- 
tion of  our  own  will ;  for  finding  is 
the  correlative  to  seeking. 


With  ch.  V.  the  writer  begins  the  formal  exposition  of  his  statement  that 
the  Christ  was  to  be  and  was  a  true  High  Priest.  "What,"  he  asks 
first,  "are  the  essential  conditions  of  human  High  Priesthood?" 


V.    1-4.      Two  REQUIREMENTS  TO  A  HiGH  PrIEST. 

{Thejirst,  w.  1—3.) 

V.     1  For  every  high  priest,  being  taken  from  among  men, 
is  appointed  for  men  in  things  pertaining  to  God,  that  he 

2  may  offer  both  gifts  and  sacrifices  for  sins :  who  can  bear 
gently  with  the  ignorant  and  erring,  for  that  he  himself 

3  also  is  compassed  with  infirmity  ;  and  by  reason  thereof  is 
bound,  as  for  the  people,  so  also  for  himself  to  offer  for 
sins. 


V.  5-10]  HEBREWS  33 

General  Note  on  V.  1-3. 

The  emphasis  in  the  first  sentence  is  on  the  words  "  being  taken  from 
among  men."  As  he  is  their  representative,  and  in  this  supreme  and 
awful  relation,  he  must  be  one  of  them.  This  is  the  first  qualification  of 
a  human  High  Priest.  While  he  represents  men  before  God,  he  is  a  man 
himself—^  man,  and  therefore  able  to  be  tolerant  of  human  weakness, 
weakness  which  he  shares  so  much  that  he  is  bound  to  offer  sacrifice  for 
his  o^vTi  sins  as  well  as  for  those  of  others.  Notice  that  this  is  a  definite 
reference  to  the  Day  of  Atonement  on  which  there  was  a  special  provision 
(Lev.  xvi.  11)  that  the  High  Priest  should  off'er  a  bullock  as  a  sin-ofi"ering 
for  his  own  sins.  Notice  also  that  we  have  here,  in  the  writer's  conscious- 
ness of  what  must  presently  be  said  of  the  human  High  Priest,  a  reason 
for  the  expressed  reservation  of  iv.  15,  "except  in  respect  of  sin." 

V.  1.  offer...gifts  and  sacrifices  for  gifts  of  homage,  thank-oflferings  and 

sins.   Cp.  viii.  3, 4,  ix.  9,  and  cp.  xi.  4.  the  like,  and  sacrifices  in  atonement 

All  the  phrases  are  habitual  in  the  for  sin. 
LXX:    the  distinction  is   between 

Then  the  second  qualification. 

{The  second) 

4  And  no  man  taketh  the  honour  unto  himself,  but  when 
he  is  called  of  God,  even  as  was  Aaron, 

These  two  qualifications,  the  writer  is  going  on  to  say,  are  found  in  the 
Christ  But  he  treats  them  in  the  reverse  order,  with  a  rhetorical  purpose, 
because  the  perfect  humanity  of  the  High  Priest  is  the  point  on  which  he 
needs  specially  to  insist    He  deals  first  with  the  appointment. 

V.  5-10.    Both  fulfilled  in  Christ. 
{The  second.) 

5  So  Christ  also  glorified  not  himself  to  be  made  an  high 
priest,  but  he  that  spake  unto  him. 

Thou  art  my  Son, 

This  day  have  I  begotten  thee : 

6  as  he  saith  also  in  another  j9^ace, 

Thou  art  a  priest  for  ever 
After  the  order  of  Melchizedek. 

5.    glorified  not  himself.      The  This  day  have  I.     It  has  been 

gloryof  being  made  a  High  Priest  was  already  pointed  out  (on    ch.   i.   5) 

not  a  self-assumed  glory.     See  note  that  (as  the  Greek  makes  clear)  the 

on  ch.  iii.2,  where  the  correspondence  emphasis  is  at  least  as  much  upon 

is  pointed  out  between  the  expression  "I"  as  upon  "this  day."    The  ideal 

here  and  John  viii.  54,  xvii.  1.  son  of  David  is  claimed  from  the 

H.  3 


34  HEBREWS  [v.  5-10 

beginning  as  God's  own  Son.     It  chizedek."   Then  follows,  introduced 

should   be    noticed    also    that   the  (after  the  way  of  this  Epistle)  merely 

point  of  the  two  quotations  here  is  by  the  relative  pronoun  "who"  (cp. 

that   the  Speaker  is  the  same  in  i.  3,  iv.  2,  and  in  this  chapter  v.  11), 

Ps.  ex.  as  in  Ps.  ii. ;  i.e.  that  the  the  expression  of  what  in  the  original 

same  Voice  which  had  proclaimed  statement  {vv.  1-3)  was  set  forth  as 

the   Christ    to  be  God's  own  Son  the  first  qualification,  viz.  that  the 

proclaimed  Him  also  to  be  a  "priest  High  Priest  should  be,  in  the  full 

for  ever  after  the  order  of   Mel-  sense  of  the  term,  a  man. 

(The  first.) 

7  Who,  in  the  days  of  his  flesh,  having  offered  up 
prayers  and  supplications  with  strong  crying  and  tears 
unto  him  that  was  able  to  save  him  ^from  death,  and 

8  having  been  heard  for  his  godly  fear,  though  he  was  a 
Son,  yet  learned  obedience  by  the  things  which  he  suffered ; 

9  and  having  been  made  perfect,  he  became  unto  all  them 
10  that  obey  him  the  ^author  of  eternal  salvation ;  named  of 

God  an  high  priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek. 

^  Or,  out  of  2  (jr,  caiise. 

General  Note  on  V.  7-10. 

What  the  writer  is  doing  in  these  verses  is  to  shew  that  Christ  answers 
to  the  requirement  that  a  High  Priest  should  be  one  of  those  whom  he  is  to 
represent.  He  establishes  this  by  referring  not  only  to  Christ's  sufferings 
in  His  human  nature,  but  also  to  the  attitude  of  filial  submission  in  which 
they  were  accepted.  He  learned  exactly  the  lesson  which  He  was  to  teach. 
It  should  be  noticed  therefore  that  there  is  a  correspondence  between  the 
"obedience"  of  v.  8  and  the  "obey  him"  of  v.  9.  His  example  must  be  fully 
followed. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  also  that,  in  the  description  of  the  sufferings,  although 
there  is  probably  thought  of  the  actual  story  of  Gethsemane  (see  notes  on  v.  7) 
and  the  Passion  (it  must  be  remembered  that  the  "crying  and  tears"  form 
no  part  of  the  picture  in  the  Gospels  of  the  Agony  in  the  Garden),  the 
verbal  reference  is  rather  to  prophecy  of  what  the  Messiah  was  to  bear  and 
to  do,  and  especially  to  Ps.  xxii.,  the  Psalm  already  quoted  (ii.  12),  to 
shew  that  He  was  to  be  the  real  Brother  of  men.  Nearly  all  the  phrases  of 
this  passage  are  to  be  found,  several  of  them  repeatedly,  in  the  LXX  version 
of  that  Psalm. 

There  is  another  point  on  which  a  word  should  be  said  somewhere,  and 
it  is  relevant  here.  The  writer  in  these  verses  and  elsewhere  lays  stress 
upon  our  Lord's  sufferings  as  constituting  a  qualification  of  His  Priesthood, 
on  the  ground  that  in  virtue  of  them  and  of  His  attitude  towards  them, 
men  could  coxmt  upon  His  understanding  and  sympathy.  We  are  not  to 
assume,  what  neither  the  written  Law  nor  tradition  gives  us  any  reason  to 


V.  5-10] 


HEBREWS 


35 


believe,  that  in  the  Jewish  Priesthood  a  moral  relation,  such  as  this  would 
imply,  existed  between  priest  and  people.  The  priest  dealt  mainly  with  the 
people  in  the  mass.  He  was  the  mouthpiece  of  their  collective  devotion. 
So  far  as  he  represented  individuals  in  special  acts  of  thanksgiving  or 
deprecation,  the  occasion  and  conditions  were  minutely  prescribed  by  law. 
His  action  was  formal  and  impersonal.  Any  comfort  to  the  individual 
conscience  came  not  from  his  personal  sympathy,  but  from  knowing  that 
the  Law  had  been  satisfied.  But  the  writer  is  speaking  not  only  to  Jewish 
experience,  but  to  human  feeling ;  and  he  is  assuming  his  readers  to  be 
at  the  point  of  view  (which  in  the  O.T.  was  only  in  process  of  being 
attained)  from  which  the  unit  of  life  is  not  the  community  but  the 
individual.  He  is  asking  them  to  think  of  Mediation  and  Atonement 
in  their  idea,  of  reconciliation  as  implying  on  the  part  of  the  Mediator 
a  true  knowledge  of  and  sympathy  with  both  the  two  persons  who  are  to 
be  reconciled.  All  that  is  said,  and  all  that  is  true,  of  the  typical  atone- 
ments of  the  Levitical  law  is  that  the  mediator  was  one  in  blood  and  on  the 
same  level  with  those  whom  he  represented.  This  too  was  typical,  and  the 
imity  which  it  figured  was  a  more  perfect  one.  It  was  a  real  danger  and 
one  to  be  met,  that  an  untempered  insistence  on  the  superhuman  side  of 
the  true  Mediator  would  make  the  Mediation  seem  less  real,  less  satisfying, 
than  the  mediations  of  the  Law. 


7.  the  days  of  his  flesh,  i.e.  during 
His  bodily  life  on  earth.  So  1  Pet. 
iv.  2,  "your  time  in  the  flesh."  It 
is  contrasted  here  on  the  one  side 
with  His  appearance  in  prophecy, 
described  in  the  preceding  verses, 
on  the  other  with  the  moment,  de- 
scribed in  V.  9,  when  His  work  on 
earth  was  fully  done. 

offered  up.  The  verb  here  used 
(vrpoacpfpnv)  occurs  19  times  more 
in  the  Epistle,  18  of  them  in  the 
clear  sense  of  offering  sacrifice ;  and 
we  have  had  it  in  that  sense  twice 
already  in  the  present  passage,  v.  1, 
"offer  gifts  and  sacrifices,"  v.  3,  "offer 
for  sins."  It  is  hard  to  resist  the 
conclusion  that  it  has  a  similar 
sense  here.  The  "prayers  and  sup- 
plications with  strong  crying  and 
tears,"  coupled  as  they  were  with 
"godly  fear"  and  "obedience,"  are 
viewed  as  part  at  least  of  the  High 
Priest's  offering,  as  it  is  explained 
in  ch.  X.  5-10. 
from  (marg.  out  of)  death.    The 


literal  rendering  "out  of  death" 
gives  the  meaning  more  clearly. 
Cp.  John  xii.  27,  "save  me  from 
(out  of)  this  hour,"  that  is,  as  West- 
cott  interprets,  "bring  me  safely  out 
of  the  conflict,"  not  "keep  me  from 
entering  it."  So  we  read  in  Jude  5, 
"having  saved  a  people  (i.e.  brought 
them  safely)  out  of  the  land  of 
Egypt."  Our  Lord,  we  are  told  here, 
"was  heard,"  i.e.  His  prayer  was 
granted-  He  was  delivered  from 
death,  but  not  from  dying.  The 
phrase  "Him  that  was  able  to  save" 
is  possibly  a  reference  to  His  re- 
corded words,  "Father,  all  things 
are  possible  unto  thee,"  Mark  xiv. 
36;  cp.  also  Matt  xxvi.  53. 

godly  fear.  The  (single)  Greek 
word  which  is  so  rendered  occurs 
again  in  ch.  xii.  28  and  is  there 
coupled  with  "awe"  and  rendered 
(in  R.V.)  "reverence"  (A.V.  "godly 
fear").  The  adjective  from  which 
it  is  formed,  and  which  originally 
meant  "handling  things  cautiously," 

3—2 


36 


HEBREWS 


[v.  5-10 


is  one  employed  by  St  Luke  (Luke 
ii.  25,  Acts  ii.  5,  viii.  2,  xxii.  12)  and 
always  rendered  in  R.V.  "devout." 
The  word  as  used  here  describes  the 
attitude  of  reverent  submission  to 
the  Father's  will 

8.  learned... hy  the  things  which 
he  suffered.  A  translation  cannot 
preserve  the  assonance  and  the  pro- 
verbial form  of  the  Greek  {tfiaOev 
dcf)  <Bv  enadev).  The  easy  use  of 
a  Greek  proverb  [Herod,  i.  207, 
Aesch.  Agam.  170,  241,  Soph.  O.C. 
143,  Plat.  Symp.  p.  272]  in  the 
full  sense  in  which  we  are  familiar 
with  it  in  classical  literature  is 
one  proof  among  many  that  we 
are  dealing  in  the  Epistle  with  an 
original  Greek  writing,  not  (as 
Clement  of  Alexandria  surmised)  a 
translation  from  the  Aramaic.  It 
is  also  an  illustration  of  what  Origen 
meant  when  he  said  that  the  writer 
was  one  who  wrote  "more  really  as 
a  Greek"  than  St  Paul  did 

9.  made  perfect ;  as  in  ch.  ii.  10, 
which  is  a  parallel  in  thought  as  well 
as  expression.  Notice  that  here, 
as  there,  the  apologetic  purpose  is 
present,  to  meet  the  objections 
taken  to  a  suffering  Messiah,  The 
suffering,  the  real  humanity,  is 
claimed  as  a  necessary  condition 
of  the  effective  Priesthood. 

author.  Vaughan  translates  "  per- 
sonal cause." 


eternal  salvation.  See  on  i.  14. 
The  phrase  as  a  whole  comes  from 
the  O.T.,  as  Isaiah  xlv.  17.  As  used 
here  it  anticipates  the  full  explana- 
tion of  ch.  ix.  12,  "eternal  redemp- 
tion." 

10.  named  of  God.  We  might 
paraphrase  "  For  being  thus  a  man 
among  His  brethren.  He  had 
also  the  other  qualification.  He 
had  been  already  recognized  by  God 
Himself  as  a  High  Priest,  and  High 
Priest  after  the  order  of  Melchize- 
dek."  This  last  phrase  is  now  to  be 
explained.  It  should  be  noted  that 
the  words  "a  high  priest  after  the 
order"  are  not  quoted  exactly  from 
the  Psalm.  The  words  in  it  are 
rightly  given  in  v.  6,  "a  priest  for 
ever  after  the  order."  The  explana- 
tion no  doubt  is  that  the  writer  here 
is  taking  the  prophecy  of  Ps.  ex.  as 
a  whole ;  v.  1  (already  quoted  several 
times  in  the  Epistle)  as  well  as  v.  4. 
The  "priest  for  ever  after  the  order 
of  Melchizedek"  of  the  one  verse  is 
the  same  Person  that  has  been  bidden 
in  V.  1  to  "sit  at  God's  right  hand"; 
and  the  "passing  through  the  hea- 
vens" has  been  already  (ch.  iv.  14) 
linked  in  our  writer's  interpretation 
with  that  typical  passing  "within  the 
veil"  which  was  the  High  Priest's 
especial  function. 


General  Note  on  the  relation  of  V.  10  to  V.  Wfoll. 

"  A  High  Priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek."  Here  then  is  the 
thought  which  has  been  in  the  writer's  mind  since  the  first  reference  to 
Ps.  ex.,  and  which  interprets  the  expression  of  ch.  iv.  14,  "  a  great  High 
Priest."  Postponing  anything  that  is  to  be  said  of  the  way  in  which  the 
thought  is  to  be  worked  out,  we  may  note  at  once  that  in  it  he  has  foimd 
just  what  he  wanted,  a  way  of  explaining  most  persuasively  to  Hebrew 
Christians  what  they  have  gained,  without  losing  anything,  in  passing  on 
from  Judaism  to  Christianity.  It  touches  vitally  both  sides  of  the  truth 
which  he  is  labouring  to  establish.  It  takes  the  aspect  of  the  Jewish 
religion  which  made  the  closest  appeal  to  the  religious  consciousness — its 


V.  11-14]  HEBREWS  37 

aspect  as  a  religion  of  sacrifice,  of  priestly  access  to  God.  It  claims  for  the 
Messiah  such  a  priestly  oflSce  and  function  of  transcendent  dignity.  On  the 
other  hand  it  puts  the  superiority  of  the  priesthood  of  Christ  to  the  Levitical 
priesthood  on  grounds  which  would  least  wound  feeling  and  shock  prejudice, 
by  tracing  the  larger  conception  back,  through  words  believed  to  be  words 
of  David,  to  the  experience  and  confession  of  A  hraham. 

What  then  had  the  Psalmist  meant  when  he  saluted  the  Christ  afar  as 
a  "  priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek  "  ?  This  is  the  question  which  the 
writer  proposes  to  ask  and  answer.  But  before  this  is  done  we  have  in  the 
remaining  verses  of  the  chapter  and  in  ch.  vi.  a  long  hortatory  passage  of 
which  the  purpose  (although  before  it  ends  it  will,  as  usual,  have  added 
something  to  the  presentation  of  the  argument)  is  in  the  first  instance  to 
call  special  attention  to  this  explanation  of  Christ's  High  Priesthood,  and 
to  meet  the  supposed  objection  that  he  is  offering  his  readers  something 
novel  and  hard  "Novel  and  hard  it  is"  he  answers,  "as  all  new  lessons 
must  be  :  but  you  cannot  be  children  always." 

It  is  natural  to  compare  the  long  exhortation  in  chs.  iii.  and  Iv.  with  the 
present  one.  Bach  is  suitable  to  its  place.  The  general  source  of  danger 
in  view  in  the  two  cases  is  the  same,  viz.  despondency,  the  loss  of  faith  and 
patience.  But  the  results  traced  differ.  In  chs.  iii.  and  iv.  the  exhortation 
follows  the  presentation  of  Christ  as  the  greater  Moses ;  and  the  suitable 
warning  is  that  they  should  not  treat  their  Law-giver  and  Leader  as  their 
forefathers  treated  Moses  "in  the  provocation."  The  danger  looked  to  is 
moral — waywardness  and  rebellion.  In  the  present  passage  the  defect 
traced  in  the  first  instance  is  in  intelligence  and  spirit — a  torpor  of  mind 
and  paralysis  of  will  (what  Dante  and  the  Middle  Age  called  "accidia," 
"accidie")  which  will  prevent  their  ever  getting  to  the  heart  of  their  religion. 


V.  11-14.    Milk  and  solid  food. 

11  Of  ^whom  we  have  many  things  to  say,  and  hard  of 
interpretation,   seeing  ye   are   become   dull   of  hearing. 

12  For  when  by  reason  of  the  time  ye  ought  to  be  teachers, 
ye  have  need  again  ^that  some  one  teach  you  the  rudiments 
of  the  ^ first  principles  of  the  oracles  of  God ;  and  are 
become  such  as  have  need  of  milk,  and  not  of  solid  food. 

13  For  every  one  that  partaketh  of  milk  is  without  experience 

14  of  the  word  of  righteousness  ;  for  he  is  a  babe.  But  solid 
food  is  for  *  full-grown  men,  even  those  who  by  reason  of 
use  have  their  senses  exercised  to  discern  good  and  evil. 

1  Or,  which  ^  Or,  that  one  teach  you  which  be  the  rudiments 

*  Gr.  beginning.  *  Or,  perfect 


38 


HEBREWS 


[v.  11-U 


11.  Of  whom  {or,  which).  "Of 
which  person"  or  "of  which  matter" : 
more  probably  the  latter.  As  has 
been  noticed  it  is  a  habit  with  the 
writer  to  make  even  important 
transitions  informally  by  the  use 
of  a  relative  pronoun;  cp.  ch.  i.  3, 
iii.  2,  V.  7. 

hard  of  interpretation.  The 
follovdng  words  shew  that  this  is 
to  be  taken  in  the  limited  sense 
of  "difficult  to  expound  to  you.'^ 

dull.  The  Greek  word  is  common 
in  Plato  for  a  man  of  dull  and  torpid 
intelligence. 

12.  the  time,  i.e.  the  time  that 
has  elapsed  since  you  became 
Christians. 

that  some  one  teach  you,  or,  that 
one  teach  you  which  be.  The  diflFer- 
ence  is  of  the  accent  on  the  word 
(rivd  or  Tiva).  Either  makes  good 
sense. 

rudiments.  The  Greek  word  is 
used  of  the  "  alphabet." 

of  the  first  principles  (Gr.  "  of  the 
beginning").  The  phrase  is  re- 
peated in  ch.  vi.  1.  The  iteration 
"  rudiments  of  the  beginning  "  gives 
emphasis,  "the  very  first  and  most 
rudimentary  principles." 

the  oracles  of  God:  that  is,  as 
always  (see  Acts  vii.  38,  Rom.  iii.  2), 
the  older  Scriptures,  in  which  the 
writers  of  the  N.T.  found  all  Chris- 
tian truth  implicit.  The  very  purpose 
of  this  Epistle  is  to  shew  to  Hebrew 
Christians  the  relation  between  the 
two  Revelations. 

milk... solid  food.  The  meaning 
of  the  contrast  is  explained  in  ch. 
vi.  1,  2.  The  figure  is  a  natural  one 
in  all  literature.    Both  St  Paul  and 


St  Peter  use  it  (1  Cor.  iii.  1,  2;  1  Pet. 
ii.  2). 

13.  For  every  one,  &CC.  The  par- 
ticle implies  that  the  sentence  so 
introduced  is  meant  to  justify  and 
explain  the  metaphor:  "I  say  that 
you  need  milk  and  not  solid  food, 
and  by  this  1  mean  that  you  are 
still  as  babes,  unfit,  as  babes  are,  for 
full  moral  teaching."  "The  [it  should 
be  rather  "a"]  word  of  righteousness  " 
is  a  literal,  but  not  an  interpretative, 
translation.  "Word  of"  seems  (as 
in  ch.  vi.  1 ;  see  marg.)  to  mean 
"teaching  about."  The  negative 
sentence  is  explained  by  the  positive 
one  that  follows :  unfitness  for  the 
"  word  of  righteousness "  is  the 
opposite  of  the  power,  which 
comes  with  maturity,  to  "discern 
good  and  evil."  The  "babe"  has 
the  faculty,  but  like  its  "organs  of 
sense,"  it  has  not  been  "exercised." 
It  is  implied,  though  not  fully  said, 
that  teaching  of  the  priestly  work 
of  Christ  presupposes,  for  its  recep- 
tion, a  more  complete  awakening 
and  exercise  of  the  moral  sense. 

14.  to  discern  good  and  evil. 
The  words  as  they  stand  (as  is 
shewn  by  their  relation  to  the 
"senses,"  or  rather  "organs  of  sense") 
belong  to  the  figure ;  i.e.  it  is  not,  in 
the  first  instance,  moral  good  and 
evil.  The  babe  cannot  choose  be- 
tween what  is  wholesome  and  the 
contrary.  Mr  Rendall  points  out 
that  the  phrases  used  belong  to 
the  proverbial  expression  of  the  limi- 
tations of  childhood,  its  incapacity 
to  "refuse  the  evil  and  choose  the 
good,"  Is.  vii.  16,  Deut.  L  39. 


VI.  1-3] 


HEBREWS 


39 


VI.  1-3.    Advance  in  Christian  knowledge. 

VI.  1  Wherefore  let  us  ^  cease  to  speak  of  the  first  principles 
of  Christ,  and  press  on  unto  ^perfection  ;  not  laying  again 
a  foundation  of  repentance  from  dead  works,  and  of  faith 

2  toward  God,  ^of  the  teaching  of  *  baptisms  and  of  laying 
on  of  hands,  and  of  resurrection  of  the  dead,  and  of  eternal 

3  judgement.     And  this  will  we  do,  if  God  permit. 

1  Gr.  leave  the  word  of  the  ieginning  of  Christ. 

2  Or,  full  growth 

^  Some  ancient  authorities  read,  even  the  teaching  of. 
■*  Or,  washings 


VI.  1.  FF%er<?/or« ;  the  conclusion 
from  the  whole  thought,  viz.  that  it 
is  time  for  his  readers  to  shake  off 
their  sloth  and  advance  in  Christian 
experience. 

press  on.  The  verb  so  rendered 
is  middle  or  passive,  and  possibly 
means  "let  us  be  carried  on" — let  us 
yield  to  the  movement  of  the  Spirit 
which  would  carry  us  on. 

perfection,  marg.  full  growth.  It 
is  the  cognate  word  to  the  adjec- 
tive used  in  ch.  v.  14,  and  there 
translated  "full-grown."  Both  in 
classical  Greek  and  in  the  N.T.  (cp. 
1  Cor.  xiv.  20 ;  Eph.  iv.  13,  14)  the 
words  are  used  in  both  senses,  the 
two  meeting  in  the  idea  of  complete- 
ness, the  attainment  of  the  final 
stage.  The  only  question  can  be 
how  far  in  any  particular  case  the 
figure  of  growth  was  consciously 
present.  Here  the  relation  to  the 
figures  of  ch.  v.  12  foil,  makes  it  hard 
to  doubt  that  it  was. 

In  vv.  1,  2  we  have  a  picture  (it  is 
clear)  of  the  preparation  of  a  Cate- 
chumen. It  is,  as  we  might  say,  "let 
us  not  do  nothing  beyond  learning 
the  Catechism."  The  picture  itself 
is  in  accord  with  what  we  see  of  the 
earliest  Christian  teaching  in  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles — the  Gospel 


call  to  repentance  and  belief;  the 
initial  rites,  baptism  and  the  laying 
on  of  hands  (Acts  viiL  7) ;  lastly  the 
twin  doctrines,  always  in  the  front 
of  Apostolic  teaching.  Resurrection 
and  Judgement.  It  will  be  noticed 
that  the  teaching  which  is  described 
thus  as  rudimentary  is  teaching 
which  did  not  require  a  Jew  to  give 
up  anything.  It  was  different  when 
they  were  called  upon  to  recognize 
that  the  Atonements  of  the  Law  were 
superseded. 

dead  works  is  a  phrase  peculiar 
to  the  Epistle;  see  on  ch.  ix.  14, 
"  cleanse  your  conscience  from  dead 
works."  There  the  phrase  is  doubly 
related  to  the  context,  as  suggesting 
at  once  a  contrast  with  the  "  service 
of  the  living  God,"  and  a  comparison 
between  the  moral  defilement  re- 
sulting from  sinful  actions  and  the 
ceremonial  defilement  caused  by 
touching  a  dead  body.  No  such 
particular  thoughts  are  in  view  here, 
so  that  the  phrase  seems  to  be  an 
habitual  one  and  to  be  explained  on 
general  considerations.  It  has  a 
likeness  to  such  an  expression  as 
Eph.  V.  11,  "unfruitful  works"— 
works,  that  is,  without  result,  that 
are  as  a  dead  bough  that  can  pro- 
duce no  fruit ;  and  it  belongs  to 


40 


HEBREWS 


[VI.  4-8 


the  figure  common  in  all  the  N.T., 
which  represents  the  diflference  be- 
tween the  life  of  the  senses  and  the 
life  of  the  spirit  as  a  diflference  be- 
tween death  and  life:  cp.  Luke  xv. 
24 ;  Bph.  ii.  1 ;  1  John  iii.  14. 

2.  baptisms  (marg.  washings). 
The  plural  belongs,  no  doubt,  to  an 
address  to  Jewish  Christians  who 
had  had  ceremonial  washings  of  their 
own  (see  at  ch.  ix.  10)  and  who  would 
have  needed  (as  we  see  from  the 


story  in  Acts  xix.  1-5)  instruction  in 
the  diflference  between  Christian 
Baptism  and  other  "  washings."  Cp. 
the  "questioning"  which  at  an 
earlier  date  arose  "on  the  part  of 
John's  disciples  with  a  Jew  about 
purifying,"  i.e.  apparently,  about  the 
principle  and  meaning  of  his  baptism, 
and  that  of  the  disciples  of  Jesus 
(John  iii.  25). 

3.    if=  "  if  indeed  " ;  an  emphatic 
"if." 


At  this  point  the  address  takes  another  turn.  The  new  thought  is 
perhaps  at  the  back  of  this  emphasis  on  the  "  if,"  as  though  he  contemplated 
a  diflSculty  in  doing  as  he  said. 


VI.  4-8.    Danger  of  falling  back. 

4  For  as  touching  those  that  were  once  enlightened  ^and 
tasted  of  the  heavenly  gift,  and  were  made  partakers  of  the 

5  Holy  Ghost,  and  ^tasted  the  good  word  of  God,  and  the 

6  powers  of  the  age  to  come,  and  then  fell  away,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  renew  them  again  unto  repentance  ;  ^seeing  they 
crucify  to  themselves  the  Son  of  God  afresh,  and  put  him 

7  to  an  open  shame.  For  the  land  which  hath  drunk  the  rain 
that  Cometh  oft  upon  it,  and  bringeth  forth  herbs  meet  for 
them  for  whose  sake  it  is  also  tilled,  receiveth  blessing  from 

8  God  :  but  if  it  beareth  thorns  and  thistles,  it  is  rejected  and 
nigh  unto  a  curse  ;  whose  end  is  to  be  burned. 

^  Or,  having  both  tasted  of... and  being  made. ..and  having  tasted,  d;c. 
^  Or,  tasted  the  word  of  God  that  it  is  good 
*  Or,  the  while 


4,  5.  enlightened... tasted... made 
partakers  . . .  tasted.  A  series  of 
phrases  descriptive  of  the  eflfect  on 
a  convert  of  his  first  appreciation  of 
Christianity.  We  must  not  distin- 
guish them  too  closely.  The  rhetori- 
cal eflfect  lies  in  the  suggested  con- 
trast between  the  ample  list  of  graces 
and  opportunities  which  are  repre- 
sented as  having  been  lavished  on 
him  and  the  return  made  by  him,  for 


which  a  single  curt  phrase  suflBces, 
"fell  away."  Westcott  calls  atten- 
tion to  the  fact  that  the  graces 
named  are  "gifts  of  power,  of  per- 
sonal endowment :  there  is  no  gift 
[named  among  them]  of  love."  The 
hope  even  for  those  whom  this  lavish 
expenditure  of  gifts  has  failed  to 
keep  straight  may  yet  lie  in  the  fact 
that  (see  below,  v.  10)  they  have  that 
"more  excellent"  gift  (1  Cor.  xii.  31). 


VI.  4-8] 


HEBREWS 


41 


4.  For;  in  sequence  to  "this 
will  we  do,"  i.e.  we  will  endeavour  to 
carry  you  forward,  because  the 
thought  of  going  back  is  so  terrible. 

were  once  enlightened.  So  in  ch.  x. 
32,  "after  ye  were  enlightened." 
Conversion  to  Christianity  is  looked 
upon  as  the  dawning  of  a  new  light. 
In  the  next  century  the  word  had 
become  a  technical  term  as  an  equi- 
valent for  being  "baptized."  It  is 
to  be  noticed  (see  the  general  note  on 
these  verses)  that  the  word  rendered 
"  once  "  is  emphatic,  "  once  for  all." 

the  heavenly  gift ;  not  to  be 
separated  too  much  from  the  fol- 
lowing phrase :  the  two  together  are 
nearly  equivalent  to  "the  heavenly 
gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost,"  the  first 
phrase  calling  attention  to  the  fact 
that  it  is  a  gift  (see  Luke  xL  13, 
John  iv.  10),  the  second,  "made 
partakers  of,"  to  its  reception. 

5.  tasted  the  good  word  of  God. 
The  alternative  offered  in  the  margin 
is  more  correct,  "  tasted  the  word  of 
God  that  it  is  good,"  i.e.  "  tasted  the 
goodness  of  the  word  of  God."  It 
may  be  noticed  also  that  it  is  not 
literally  "the  word  of  God,"  in  the 
sense  of  the  collected  Revelation  ; 
but  "  a  word  (or  utterance)  of  God," 
i.e.  anything  that  God  says ;  cp. 
Eph.  vi.  17.  But,  of  course,  the 
primary  reference  is  to  the  Gospel. 

good ;  good  to  the  taste  and 
wholesome  :  cp.  the  use  of  the  word 
in  ch.  V.  14,  and  in  Matt.  xii.  33. 

powers.  The  supernatural  energies 
associated  in  prophecy  (as  in  Joel  ii. 
28,  29)  with  the  Messianic  age  (here 
called  "the  age  to  come,"  see  on 
ch.  ii.  5),  and  realized  in  the  "  gifts 
of  the  Holy  Ghost"  of  ch.  ii.  4, 1  Cor. 
xii.,  &c. 

6.  and  then  fell  away.  "Then"= 
"  after  all  that."    It  is  not  expressed 


in  the  Greek,  but  the  purpose  of  its 
insertion  is  to  represent  the  rhetori- 
cal effect  of  the  original,  in  which  the 
single  and  curt  phrase  "fell  away" 
(which  sums  up  the  return  that 
they  make)  is  in  contrast  with  the 
long  list  of  gifts  and  opportunities 
which  have  been  lavished  on  them, 
"  the  heavenly  gift,  &c." 

crucify  to  themselves',  i.e.  put 
themselves  (by  their  apostasy,  where- 
by they  pronounce  the  Son  of  God  to 
be  an  impostor)  into  the  position  of 
those  who  crucified  Him.  In  con- 
trast with  this  aspect  of  their  action 
as  "  to  themselves,"  is  put  its  further 
effect  on  others,  of  holding  Him  up 
to  shame. 

7.  it  is  also  tilled.  "  Also,"  i.e.  in 
addition  to  receiving  the  rain.  It 
answers  to  what  is  done  for  it  both 
by  nature  and  by  man's  hands. 

receiveth  blessing.  It  is  literally 
"shareth  in,"  and  it  seems  well  to 
keep  this.  A  special  blessing  is 
referred  to ;  viz.  that  of  Gen.  i.  12. 
So  vrith  the  "  curse  "  in  v.  8,  there  is 
a  remembrance  of  the  cursing  of  the 
ground  for  man's  sake  after  the  Fall 
in  Gen.  iii.  17.  The  leading  words 
in  these  verses  come  from  one  or 
other  of  those  passages.  This  also 
explains  the  double  expression  "is 
rejected"  (fails,  that  is,  to  win  the 
approval  as  "  good  ")  and  "  is  nearer 
to  incurring  the  curse  of  barren- 
ness." 

8.  whose  end  is  to  be  burned. 
Lit.  "of  which  the  end  is  for  burning" ; 
that  is,  all  that  its  produce  is  good 
for  is  to  feed  a  bonfire.  It  has  been 
complained  that  the  image  of  burn- 
ing weeds  lacks  weight ;  but  it  gains 
that  weight  from  the  thought  of  the 
thing  imaged;  cp.  the  end  of  the 
Parable  of  the  Tares. 


42  HEBREWS  [vi.  4-8 


Genercd  Note  on  VI.  4-8. 

These  verses  have  had  a  long  history  in  Christian  controversy.  "  It  is 
impossible  to  renew  them  again  unto  repentance  "  :  they  are  solemn  words ; 
a  vision  of  the  awfvil  danger  of  apostasy,  of  turning  back  from  a  high  calling. 
The  writer  means  to  put  that  danger  strongly  before  his  readers'  minds, 
although  he  hastens  in  the  following  verses  tenderly  to  assure  them  that  the 
vision  does  not  reflect  their  own  position.  But  like  all  such  words  they  must 
be  read  carefully  and  in  their  context.  We  cannot  but  be  right,  for  instance, 
in  noticing  what  must  be  a  purposed  change  in  tenses  in  the  Greek,  hard  to 
keep  in  a  translation  :  "enlightened,"  "tasted,"  "fell  away,"  all  in  the  Greek 
aorist,  which  belongs  to  single,  definite,  completed  action ;  "  renew," 
"crucify,"  "put  to  shame,"  all  in  the  present,  which  belongs  to  inchoate, 
continuous,  habitual  action.  This  in  itself  limits  the  statement.  Whether 
we  take  the  Greek  participle  "  crucifying  "  to  mean  "  seeing  they  crucify  " 
(as  A.V.  and  R.V.  in  text)  or  "the  while  they  crucify"  (R.V.  marg.)  or  "if 
they  crucify  "  (and  all  these  meanings  are  possible),  in  any  case  it  is  of  action 
continued  to  the  time  that  the  attempt  to  "  renew  "  is  made.  It  is  "  they  are 
crucifying."  Cessante  causa,  cessabit  effectus.  If  the  cause  ceases  to  operate 
the  effect  will  cease  to  follow.  But  we  are  on  still  broader  and  safer  ground 
[We  do  not  always  realize  how  new  in  the  history  of  interpretation,  and 
especially  of  Biblical  interpretation,  is  the  canon  which  seems  to  us  so  un- 
questionable] in  looking  at  the  general  tenor  and  purpose  of  the  writer. 
What  he  is  speaking  of  is  the  graduation  of  Christian  teaching.  They  must 
not  be  content  (he  says)  with  the  elements  which  answer  to  the  milk  that 
is  for  babes.  They  must  grow  in  interest  and  capacity  for  understanding 
and  judging  what  is  offered  to  them  as  the  fuller  Christian  Truth.  This  is 
what  he  is  hoping  and  purposing  for  them.  One  thing  he  will  not  contem- 
plate— i\\e\T  falling  away,  putting  themselves  back  into  their  pre-Christian 
state.  For  such  a  stage  as  that  he  has  no  teaching — no  doctrine  still  in  re- 
serve, of  greater  power  to  move  or  convince.  They  have  "  seen  the  light," 
"  tasted  the  gift."  It  is  like  soil  for  which  the  skies  and  the  husbandman 
have  done  all  that  can  be  done.  It  would  be  a  sad,  even  a  hopeless  case. 
But  the  writer  is  putting  the  matter  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  teacher. 
He  has  done  all  that  he  can  do.  What  he  is  deprecating  is  the  thought  that 
he  has  kept  back  something ;  that  there  is  still  in  his  store  the  argument, 
the  explanation,  the  revelation,  the  motive  which  will  succeed  when  the 
others  have  failed. 

Both  in  early  days,  and  again  in  the  controversies  of  the  Reformation 
age,  this  limited  reference  of  the  passage  was  overlooked.  It  was  treated 
as  an  absolute  declaration  of  the  impossibility  of  recovery  to  those  who  fell 
away.  It  was  the  use  of  the  passage  by  the  Novatian  schismatics  to  support 
their  exclusion  of  the  "  lapsed"  from  all  return  to  Communion  which  was  the 
ground  (apart  from  the  question  of  authorship)  for  the  long  resistance 
offered  to  the  acceptance  of  the  Epistle  as  Canonical  And  in  the  same  way 
in  the  discussion  between  Calvinists  and  Arminians  on  the  possibility  of 
falling  from  grace  this  passage  was  treated  on  both  sides  as  one  that  must 


vi.  9-12]  HEBREWS  43 

be  forced  into  agreement  with  their  several  views.    The  truth  is  that  it  does 
not  touch  such  questions. 

"  Impossible  "  !  It  is  a  final  word.  But  the  impossibility  spoken  of  is  an 
impossibility  to  man,  not  to  God.  The  Apostle  has  no  more  teaching.  His 
bolt  is  shot — his  quiver  is  empty.  That  is  in  itself  a  solenm  consideration,  a 
reason  to  be  urged  for  listening  to  his  teaching  while  it  is  possible.  But  it 
does  not  Umit,  or  touch,  the  power  of 

"His  high  Hand 
Who  doth  hearts  as  streams  command." 
See  also  the  notes  above  on  vv.  4,  5  and  below  on  v.  10. 

VI.  9-12.    "Add  to  love  faith  and  hope." 

9  But,  beloved,  we  are  persuaded  better  things  of  you,  and 
things  that  'accompany  salvation,  though  we  thus  speak  : 

10  for  God  is  not  unrighteous  to  forget  your  work  and  the  love 
which  ye  shewed  towards  his  name,  in  that  ye  ministered 

1 1  unto  the  saints  and  still  do  minister.  And  we  desire  that 
each  one  of  you  may  shew  the  same  diligence  unto  the 

12  ^fulness  of  hope  even  to  the  end  :  that  ye  be  not  sluggish, 
but  imitators  of  them  who  through  faith  and  patience 
inherit  the  promises. 

^  Or,  are  near  to  ^  Or,  full  assurance 

9.  better.  It  is  in  the  Greek  "  the  merit,  nor  of  future  reward,  but  of 
better,"  i.e.  the  better  of  two  possible  present  grace  and  advance  :  "  to  him 
alternatives.  that  hath  shall  be  given."    It  would 

that  accompany.    Lit.  "  that  hold  be  a  wrong  in  God's  world,  a  breach 

to,  belong  to."    The  form  of  expres-  of  God's  promise,  if  faithful  effort, 

sion  seems  to  be  chosen  as  corre-  true  self-forgetfulness,  did  not  lead 

spending  to  the  preceding    "nigh  a  man  higher,  not  lower.     As  was 

unto  (the  same  Greek  word)  a  curse."  noticed  before  (note  on  vv.  4,  5)  love 

salvation.    See  on  ch.  i.  14.    This  was  not  named  in  the  list  of  graces 

is  a  case  where  no  special  figure  is  in  a^nd  powers  from  which  the  possi- 

view.    The  word  describes  a  "safe  bility  of  faUing  away  was  contem- 

issue  "  as  generally  as  possible.     It  is  plated.     It  is  the  "  more  excellent 

the  opposite  of  condemnation,  de-  ^^j"  which,  as  it  ranks  above  all 

struction,  "  a  curse  "  {v.  8).  other  spiritual  endowments,  so  gives 

thus,  i.e.  as  we  have  been  speak-  surer  hope  that  a  good  work  has 

ing.    It  is  an  half  apology  for  severity  been  begun  which  will  not  be  allowed 

of  tone.  to  fall  through. 

10.  God  is  not  unrighteous.  Cp.  love.  A.V.  had  "labour  of  love," 
St  John's  assurance  (1  John  i.  9),  but  the  better  text  omits  the  first  sub- 
"  He  is  faithful  and  righteous  to  for-  stantive,  which  came  in  from  the  re- 
give  us."     The  thought  is  not  of  membranceof  1  Thess.i.3.  We  notice 


44 


HEBREWS 


[VI.  13-20 


that  (as  in  that  place)  we  have  in  rm. 
10-12  (cp.  ch.  X.  22-24)  the  familiar 
triad,  love,  hope,  faith.  So  in  I  Pet  i. 
21,22.  This  does  not  mean  that  they 
are  realized  in  distinctness  and 
mutual  relation,  as  by  St  Paul  in 
one  supreme  moment  in  1  Cor.  xiii. 
13. 

towards  his  name,  ie.  towards 
Him  and  therefore  towards  those 
who  bore  His  name,  towards  their 
fellow-Christians.  Cp.  Matt.  x.  42, 
"in  the  name  of  a  disciple,"  and  Mark 
ix.  41  (R.V.  marg.),  "in  name  that  ye 
are  Christ's." 

11.  desire.  Lit.  "set  our  heart 
on."  Vaughan  translates  "  it  is  our 
heart's  desire."  It  is  a  strong  word 
for  personal  desire,  the  word  trans- 
lated in  the  xth  Commandment 
"covet"  It  is  our  Lord's  word, 
"with  desire  have  I  desired,"  Luke 
xxii.  15,  and  "many  prophets  and 
kings  have  desired,"  Matt  xiii.  17. 

shew.  The  verb  is  designedly  re- 
peated from  V.  10.  This  is  more 
evident  in  the  Greek,  in  which  it  is 
a  longer  and  less  familiar  word  («V- 
dfUvva-Bai).  Their  love  was  out  of 
the  common,  could  not  be  overlooked. 
He  would  wish  that  their  hope  and 
faith  might  be  equally  conspicuous. 


diligence  unto,  i.e.  in  the  direc- 
tion of 

fulness  (or,  full  assurance)  qfhope. 
The  word  translated  "fulness,"  mean- 
ing properly  "full  measure,"  acquired 
(as  our  words  "  satisfy,"  &c.)  the  sense 
of  "  full  assurance  "  and  is  so  used  in 
1  Thess.  i.  5.  It  may  be  so  here  and 
in  ch.  X.  22 ;  but  the  sense  of  "  ful- 
ness "  is  all  that  is  needed.  We  may 
note  that  in  this  Epistle  "  hope  "  has 
the  prominent  place  which  St  Paul 
rather  gives  to  "  faith  "  (cp.  ch.  iii.  6 
and  X.  23,  with  note).  As  the  next 
words  indicate,  what  the  writer  is 
dreading  most  is  the  despondency 
which  paralyzes  effort. 

to  the  end.  Cp.  ch.  iii.  6  and  14, 
One  thinks  of  Mark  xiii.  13,  "  he  that 
endureth  to  the  end." 

12.  sluggish.  It  is  the  word  trans- 
lated "  dull "  in  V.  11;  see  note  there. 

them  who... inherit.  The  faith- 
ful of  all  times  (it  is  an  antici- 
pation of  the  great  catalogue  of 
ch.  xi.),  though  it  is  brought  down 
in  V.  13  f  to  the  single  instance  of 
Abraham. 

inherit.  Not  "  are  heirs  to,"  but 
(as  we  see  in  v.  15) "  have  entered  on 
the  inheritance." 


VI.  13-20.    God's  sworn  promises. 

13  For  when  God  made  promise  to  Abraham,  since  he  could 

14  swear  by  none  greater,  he  sware  by  himself,  saying,  Surely 
blessing  I  will  bless  thee,  and  multiplying  I  will  multiply 

15  thee.    And  thus,  having  patiently  endured,  he  obtained  the 

16  promise.    For  men  swear  by  the  greater  ;  and  in  every  dis- 

17  pute  of  theirs  the  oath  is  final  for  confirmation.  Wherein 
God,  being  minded  to  shew  more  abundantly  unto  the 
heirs  of  the  promise  the  immutability  of  his  counsel,  Hnter- 

18  posed  with  an  oath :  that  by  two  immutable  things,  in  which 
it  is  impossible  for  God  to  lie,  we  may  have  a  strong  en- 


VI.  13-20]  HEBREWS  45 

couragement,  who  have  fled  for  refuge  to  lay  hold  of  the 

19  hope  set  before  us ;  which  we  have  as  an  anchor  of  the  soul, 
a  hope  both  sure  and  stedfast  and  entering  into  that 

20  which  is  within  the  veil ;  whither  as  a  forerunner  Jesus 
entered  for  us,  having  become  a  high  priest  after  the  order 
of  Melchizedek. 

^  Gr.  mediated. 

General  Note  on  VI.  13-20. 

These  verses  explain  and  enforce  the  exhortation  just  given  (».  12)  to 
imitate  their  faithful  forefathers,  who  had  "trusted  and  not  been  confounded." 
A  single  capital  instance  is  taken  in  Abraham,  and  attention  is  fixed  on  the 
terms  in  which  the  promise  to  him  is  described,  especially  in  Gen.  xxii.,  as 
including  the  confirmation  by  an  oath,  "  By  myself  have  I  sworn,  saith  the 
Lord."  (Notice  that  this  is  dwelt  upon  throughout  the  Bible;  see  Gen.  xxvi. 
3,  Ps.  cv.  9,  Mic.  vii.  20,  Luke  i.  73.)  Two  things  are  indicated,  though 
not  put  directly  into  words :  (1 )  that  they  have  the  same  security  as  Abraham. 
He  has  in  mind  the  solemn  terms  of  Ps.  ex.,  "  The  Lord  sware  and  will  not 
repent,"  on  which  he  will  comment  at  length  in  ch.  vii.  20  f.  This  is  the  refer- 
ence here  of  the  "  immutability  of  his  counsel " ;  (2)  that  the  promise  of  a 
"  Priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek "  is  virtually  a  repetition  of  the 
promise  to  Abraham.  They  are  the  "  heirs  of  the  promise  "  :  the  promise 
made  to  him,  in  its  higher  and  more  spiritual  import,  still  held,  and  had  been 
repeated  to  his  faithful  descendants.  As  they  have  the  same  promise  and 
the  same  security  they  should  have  the  same  hope  and  patience,  "  hope  as 
an  anchor  to  hold  by  in  a  harbour  of  refuge";  for — here  we  have  left 
Abraham  and  come  back  to  the  promise  of  the  Ideal  High  Priest — ^the 
Person  on  Whom  their  hopes  are  fastened  is  in  heaven,  in  the  true  Holy  of 
Holies — and  there,  not  only  as  a  Levitical  High  Priest,  to  represent  them, 
but  to  precede  them — to  open  a  way  by  which  they  might  follow. 

13.  when  God  made  promise.  not  the  promise "  (xi.  39),  they  "  died 
This  is  a  possible  translation,  but  it  in  faith  not  having  received  the 
is  better  to  take  it  according  to  the  promises"  (xi.  13).  But  they  re- 
more  usual  Greek  idiom,  "  when  God  ceived  instalments  of  them.  Abra- 
had  made  promise."  The  quotation  ham  had  a  son  in  his  old  age  and 
of  the  oath  is  from  Gen.  xxii.  16,  and  saw  the  promise  on  its  way  to  fulfil- 
this  was  a  confirmation  of  the  pro-  ment.  (Cp.  the  strong  statement 
mise  which  had  been  already  narrated  in  John  viii.  56.)  And  so  in  a 
in  Gen.  xii.  2,  3,  xiii.  16,  xv.  5,  6,  larger  sense,  the  promises  made  to 
xvil  5  f.  him  of  being  the  father  of  a  great 

15.     thus,  i.e.  in  reliance  on  the  people,  of  his  seed  possessing  the 

security — the  security  of  God's  oath.  Holy    Land,   of   the   birth   of   the 

obtained  the  promise.     In  what  Messiah  of  his  race,  were  literally 

sense  ?    In  one  sense  we  read  that  fulfilled.     History  bore  witness  that 

the  faithful  men  of  old  "received  the  promises  had  not  been  futile. 


46 


HEBREWS 


[VL  13-20 


Cp.  the  use  of  the  same  phrase  in 
ch.  xi.  33. 

16.  For.  The  particle  introduces 
a  justification  (it  is  of  the  nature  of 
an  apology)  of  the  statements  in 
Genesis  that  God  "sware"  and 
"sware  by  Himself" — these  state- 
ments themselves  being  appealed  to 
as  a  precedent  (and  so  an  explana- 
tion) of  the  words  in  Ps.  ex.,  "the 
Lord  sware  and  will  not  repent." 

17.  Wherein.  "In  which  state 
of  things,"  i.e.  things  being  so. 

to  shew  more  abundantly.  The 
Greek  is  properly  a  paradoxical 
word,  and  expresses  assurance  made 
even  superfluously  sure. 

the  heirs  of  the  promise.  For  the 
promise  was  to  "Abraham  and  his 
seed."  In  a  sense  (as  we  have  seen) 
Abi-aham  "  obtained  the  promise  "  ; 
but  the  promise  in  a  full  spiritual 
senselengthenedout  to  each  succeed- 
ing generation,  and  was  renewed 
(the  writer  would  say)  in  the  prophecy 
of  Ps.  ex. 

interposed.  Lit  "  played  the  part 
of  a  mediator."  It  has  been  recog- 
nized already  {v.  13)  that  the  analogy 
is  imperfect  between  the  human 
oath,  which  is  the  appeal  to  a  higher 
power,  and  the  oath  of  God,  Who  has 
no  superior.  In  the  same  way  there 
can  be  only  a  limited  propriety  in 
saying  that  God  "interposed"  be- 
tween Himself  and  man. 

18.  two  immutable  things.  A 
promise  and  an  oath.  There  is 
something  like  irony  in  the  modera- 
tion of  the  statement  that  "God 
cannot  lie."    Westcott  calls  atten- 


tion to  the  distinction  in  the  Greek 
between  "God"  in  v.  17,  which  has 
the  definite  article  and  is  a  personal 
designation,  and  "God"  in  v.  18, 
which  has  not,  and  is  therefore  de- 
scriptive (see  on  ch.  i.  2,  on  "his 
Son"),  "One  who  is  God,"  "  Onewhom 
you  recognize  as  God." 

set  before  us.  As  something  to 
strive  for,  to  move  towards :  so  in 
ch.  xii.  1,  2. 

19.  an  anchor.  It  is  worth 
noticing  that  this  figure  of  an 
anchor,  which  grows  here  naturally 
out  of  the  preceding  idea  of  a 
harbour  of  refuge,  if  it  had  to  the 
writer  any  roots  also  in  literary 
antecedents,  must  find  them  in 
classical  Greek,  in  which  the  anchor 
is  a  common  image  of  security.  It 
has  no  parallel  in  the  Hebrew  scrip- 
tures. 

a  hope. . .  entering.  The  repetition 
of  "hope"  in  RV.  makes  it  clear 
that  it  is  hope,  not  the  anchor  (which 
woiild  be  a  needless  mixture  of  meta- 
phor), that  enters  "  within  the  veil," 
i.e.  into  the  Holy  of  Holies.  Hope 
ventures  into  the  very  Presence  of 
God,  for  "  Christ  is  our  hope." 

20.  as  a  forerunner.  ("  I  go  to 
prepare  a  place  for  you,"  John  xiv. 
2.)  The  word  is  used  of  the  ad- 
vanced guard  of  an  approaching 
army.  See  in  the  general  note  on 
ch.  X.  19-25  some  remarks  on  the 
effect  of  the  phrase,  slipped  in  thus 
incidentally,  in  widening  the  sym- 
bolism of  the  High  Priest's  entrance 
into  the  Holy  of  Holies. 


With  ch.  vii.  we  begin  at  last  the  explanatory  comment,  so  long  promised 
and  often  deferred,  on  the  title  which  has  been  given  to  the  Christ,  viz.  the 
"  Priest  (or  High  Priest)  for  ever  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek." 


VII.  1-3]  HEBREWS  47 

VII.  1-3.    Melchizedek  in  Gen.  xiv. 

VII.     1  For  this  "  Melchizedek,"  "  king  of  Salem,"  "  priest  of 
God  Most  High,"  who  "  met  Abraham  returning  from  the 

2  slaughter  of  the  kings,"  and  "  blessed  him,"  to  whom  also 
Abraham  divided  "  a  tenth  part  of  all "  (being  first,  by 
interpretation  King  of  righteousness,  and  then  also  King 

3  of  Salem,  which  is  King  of  peace ;  without  father,  without 
mother,  without  genealogy,  having  neither  beginning  of 
days  nor  end  of  life,  but  made  like  unto  the  Son  of  God), 
abideth  a  priest  continually. 

[I  have  pixt  the  phrases  of  vp.  1  and  2  into  inverted  commas  to  indicate 
that  they  are  verhatim  quotations  from  Gen.  xiv.] 

The  phrases  of  v.  3  mean  that  the  picture  of  Melchizedek,  as  he  appears 
and  disappears  in  the  story  of  Genesis,  shews  us  no  pedigree,  personal  or 
ofBcial,  makes  no  mention  of  birth  or  death,  predecessor  or  successor.  In 
this  appearance  we  know  not  whence,  and  disappearance  we  know  not 
whither,  he  is  "  made  like  unto  the  Son  of  God  "  (cp.  John  vii.  27,  "  When 
the  Christ  cometh  no  one  knoweth  whence  he  is  "),  i.e.  he  is  fitted  to  be  a 
type  of  the  "  Son  of  God,"  the  title  used  so  often  in  this  Epistle  to  denote, 
from  the  Divine  side,  the  Person  of  the  Messiah.  It  is  important  to  keep 
clear  what  it  is  that  the  writer  is  doing.  No  doubt  in  the  appeal  to  the 
etymological  meaning  of  names  (Melchizedek — Salem),  and  in  arguments 
drawn  from  the  silence  of  Scripture  as  well  as  from  its  utterance,  he  is 
following  the  practice  of  Philo  and  the  Alexandrine  school  of  interpretation. 
'  But  he  is  not  allegorizing  for  himself  the  story  in  Genesis.  He  is  imagining 
what  the  Psalmist  is  likely  to  have  meant  hy  a  '•''  Priest  for  ever  after  the 
order  of  Melchizedek"  The  Psalmist,  it  was  clear,  took  the  title  from  the 
short  story  in  Gen.  xiv.  What  did  he  find  there  to  give  meaning  to  the 
title  ?  He  found  a  Priest  spoken  of  in  lofty  and  mysterious  terms,  as  King 
at  once  and  Priest,  whose  names  and  titles  suggested  prophetic  and 
Messianic  meanings.  "  You  hear,"  he  says,  "  nothing  of  any  earthly 
ancestry.  He  comes  into  the  narrative  and  vanishes  again  mysteriously, 
as  if  not  of  this  world.  Abraham  is  represented  as  recognizing  him  for  a 
superior.  That  is  the  picture  as  it  stands  in  Holy  Writ."  It  will  be  seen 
that  the  writer  does  not  vouch  even  for  all  the  particular  points  having 
passed  actually  through  the  Psalmist's  mind.  He  shews  what  the  materials 
were  in  the  words  of  Genesis  for  the  Psalmist's  conception.  Som.e  allegorical, 
metaphorical  use  of  the  story  is  evident  (he  would  say)  on  the  face  of  the 
expression  in  Ps.  ex.  It  is  at  least  clear  that  the  Psalmist  meant  to 
describe  the  Messiah  as  one  who  should  possess  a  Priesthood  and  one  older, 
and  more  venerable  than  that  of  the  Levitical  law. 

VII.  1.  For.  The  sentence  thus  for  the  third  time  it  has  been  asserted 
introduced  is  to  justify  the  last  clause  in  the  words  of  Ps.  ex.  that  Jesus  is 
of  the  preceding  paragraph  in  which      the  High  Priest  "  after  the  order  of 


48  HEBREWS  [vii.  4-10 

Melchizedek,"  and  especially  to  em-  an   archaic   name   for   Jerusalem," 

phasize  its  last  words  as  they  stand  Driver.     It  occurs  in   Ps.  Ixxvi.  2, 

in  the  Greek,  "for  ever,"  "For  this  "In  Salem  also  is  his  tabernacle," 

Melchizedek  (the  ideal  Melchizedek,  where  the  LXX  have   "in  peace" 

that  is,  of  whom  the  Psalm  speaks)  (eV  flp-nvrj). 

...abideth  a  priest  continually."  3.    continually.     It  is  a  phrase 

2.     hy   interpretation:    i.e.    that  peculiar  to  this  Epistle,  occurring 

was  the   etymological    meaning   of  again  in  ch.  x.  1,   12,   14.     In  the 

the  name.     Driver  on  Gen.  xiv.  18  last  two  places  it  is  rendered  in 

throws  doubts  on  the  fact;  but  this  R.V.  by  "for  ever."    It  differs  from 

does    not   affect  the  truth  of  the  the  phrases  more  properly  rendered 

statement  that  this  was  the  etymo-  "for  ever"  in  that  it  excludes  not  so 

logical    meaning    as    the    Psalmist  much  a  limit  of  duration  as  a  breach 

understood  it.  of  continuity. 

Salem.     "Intended  probably  as 

We  have  already  in  v.  3  touched  a  point,  to  be  touched  again  in  v.  8, 
and  which  will  be  further  elaborated  in  vv.  23-25,  viz,  the  suggestion, 
drawn  from  the  story,  of  a  priesthood  outside  the  limitations  of  time.  In 
the  rest  of  vv.  4-10  the  writer  presses  the  more  obvious  point  of  the 
superiority  of  the  priesthood  as  measured  by  the  greatness  of  one  to 
whom  Abraham  offered  tithes  and  from  whom  he  accepted  a  blessing. 


VII.  4-10.    Comment  on  account  in  Genesis. 

4  Now  consider  how  great  this  man  was,  unto  whom  Abra- 
ham, the  patriarch,  gave  a  tenth  out  of  the  chief  spoils. 

5  And  they  indeed  of  the  sons  of  Levi  that  receive  the 
priest's  office  have  commandment  to  take  tithes  of  the 
people  according  to  the  law,  that  is,  of  their  brethren, 
though  these  have  come  out  of  the  loins  of  Abraham: 

6  but  he  whose  genealogy  is  not  counted  from  them  hath 
taken  tithes  of  Abraham,  and  hath  blessed  him  that  hath 

7  the  promises.     But  without  any  dispute  the  less  is  blessed 

8  of  the  better.     And  here  men  that  die  receive  tithes ;  but 

9  there  one,  of  whom  it  is  witnessed  that  he  liveth.  And,  so 
to  say,  through  Abraham  even  Levi,  who  receiveth  tithes, 

10  hath  paid  tithes ;  for  he  was  yet  in  the  loins  of  his  father, 
when  Melchizedek  met  him. 

4.     how   great    this    man    teas,  the  pre-eminent   dignity  that  this 

greater  than  Abraham,  greater  than  implies!"      It  is  indicated  in  the 

the  Levitical  priests.     This  is  the  characterizing  of  Abraham  as  "the 

argument  of  vv.  4-10.     "Melchize-  patriarch"  (in  the  Greek  the  word 

dek  took  tithes  of  Abraham.    See  stands,  with  greater  emphasis,  almost 


VII.  4-10] 


HEBREWS 


49 


as  an  exclamation,  at  the  end  of  the 
sentence),  the  "father  of  the  race!" 
the  "father  of  all  the  tribes  of  Israel ! " 
Then  this  suggests  that  tithe-taking 
was  not  only  allowed  but  enjoined  in  a 
special  "commandment"  in  the  case 
of  the  Levitical  priests,  tithe-taking 
from  their  brethren,  descendants 
with  them  from  Abraham.  But 
this  again  emphasizes  the  greatness 
of  Melchizedek,  for  he  had  no  such 
tie  of  race  {v.  6),  no  such  "com- 
mandment," yet  he  took  tithes  of 
the  tithe-taker  {m.  9,  10),  took 
tithes  as  by  the  law  of  a  timeless 
world  (v.  8),  took  tithes  of  one 
whom,  by  blessing  him,  he  recog- 
nized as  inferior  in  rank  to  himself 
{vv.  6,  7). 

out  of  the  chief  spoils :  not  actually 
stated  in  Gen.  xiv.,  but  inferred 
apparently  from  the  words  "  of  all." 

5.  the  sons  of  Levi.  The  suc- 
cessive strata  of  legislation  with 
respect  to  tithes  in  the  Jewish  law 
are  hard  to  disentangle,  but  the 
writer  would  go  on  such  direct 
statements  as  Numb,  xviii.  21,  25. 
It  will  be  noticed  that  the  exact 
statement  is  that  the  Levites  took 


a  tithe  and  the  priests  a  tithe  of 
that  tithe. 

6.  hath  taken  tithes;  so  "hath 
blessed"  and  in  v.  9  "hath  paid." 
It  is  an  idiomatic  use  of  the  Greek 
perfect  tense  (especially  frequent  in 
this  Epistle — see  Westcott  on  this 
verse)  to  characterize  a  past  action 
which  endures  in  its  effects.  (An 
instance  easily  grasped  is  in  Pilate's 
saying,  John  xix.  22,  "what  I  have 
wi-itten  I  have  wi-itten,"  i.e.  I  cannot 
unwrite  it.)  The  meaning  is  ex- 
panded in  ».  8  ;  the  act  of  Mel- 
chizedek which  stamped  his  relation 
to  Abraham  was  done  once  for  all. 
It  was  not  an  accident  of  the  gene- 
rations. It  was  done  and  stands 
recorded  for  all  time  in  Scripture. 

8.  here... there;  "in  our  own 
experience  ". . ."  in  the  Scripture 
story." 

9.  so  to  say ;  an  apologetic 
phrase  common  in  classical  Greek, 
but  not  found  in  the  Bible  save  in 
this  place.  It  is  opposed  by  Plato 
to  "in  exact  speech"  (aKpi/Sei  \6ya>). 
It  implies  here  that  the  saying  to 
which  it  is  attached  must  not  be 
pressed  logically. 


Introductory  Note  to  VII.  11-25. 

Down  to  this  point  the  writer  has  been  interpreting  the  expressions  of 
the  Psalmist  by  looking  at  the  record  in  Genesis  upon  which  they  were 
built.  He  goes  on  to  examine  a  little  more  closely  the  actual  expression 
of  the  Psalm  itself;  and  in  three  points,  touched  on  severally  (1)  in  w.  11-19, 
(2)  in  vv.  20-22,  (3)  in  vw.  23-25. 

(1)  vv.  11-19.  We  are  to  note  that  it  is  prophecy/.  The  Levitical  priest- 
hood was  in  possession:  but  there  was  to  he  a  priesthood  after  another 
order,  of  another  tribe  (vc.  13,  14),  of  another  mode  of  appointment 
{vv.  15-19).  What  can  this  mean,  but  that  the  Law  (of  which  the  Priest- 
hood was  a  corner  stone)  was  itself  temporary  and  incomplete  ? 


50  HEBREWS  [vii.  1 1-28 

VII.  11-28.    Comment  on  prophecy  in  Ps.  ex. 
(1)    "  After  the  order  of  Melchizedek"    (11-19.) 

1 1  Now  if  there  was  perfection  through  the  Levitical  priest- 
hood (for  under  it  hath  the  people  received  the  law), 
what  further  need  was  there  that  another  priest  should 
arise  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek,  and  not  be  reckoned 

12  after  the  order  of  Aaron  ?  For  the  priesthood  being 
changed,  there  is  made  of  necessity  a  change  also  ^of  the 

13  law.  For  he  of  whom  these  things  are  said  ^belongeth 
to  another  tribe,  fi-om  which  no  man  hath  given  attend- 

14  ance  at  the  altar.  For  it  is  evident  that  our  Lord  hath 
sprung  out  of  Judah;    as  to  which  tribe  Moses  spake 

15  nothing  concerning  priests.  And  what  we  say  is  yet 
more  abundantly  evident,  if  after  the  likeness  of  Mel- 

16  chizedek  there  ariseth  another  priest,  who  hath  been 
made,  not  after  the  law  of  a  carnal  commandment,  but 

17  after  the  power  of  an  ^endless  life:  for  it  is  witnessed 
of  him, 

Thou  art  a  priest  for  ever 
After  the  order  of  Melchizedek. 

18  For  there  is  a  disannulling  of  a  foregoing  commandment 

19  because  of  its  weakness  and  unprofitableness  (for  the  law 
made  nothing  perfect),  and  a  bringing  in  thereupon  of  a 
better  hope,  through  which  we  draw  nigh  unto  God. 

^  Or,  of  law  ^  Gr.  hath  partaken  of.     See  ch.  ii.  14. 

^  Gr.  indissoluble. 

11.  perfection.  A  special  point  either  in  the  Bible  or  in  other  con- 
in  which  it  did  not  attain  perfection  temporary  writings ;  and  suggests 
is  named  in  ch.  ix.  9,  viz.  the  cleans-  that  it  was  adopted  by  the  writer 
ing  of  the  conscience:  but  the  ex-  here  in  preference  to  the  more 
pression  here  is  larger,  as  in  v.  19,  natural  "after  the  order  of  Aaron," 
"  the  Law  made  nothing  perfect " :  in  order  to  emphasize  the  difference 
it  brought  to  light  defects,  awoke  of  Tribe  to  which  he  is  about  to 
desires,  suggested  adjustment;  but  call  attention, 
the  fulfilments  were  typical,  partial,  under  it.  The  Greek  is  more  ex- 
temporary, pressive,  "upon  it":  the  legislation 

Levitical.    Westcott  notices  that  rests  upon  it  as  a  building  upon  its 

the  adjective  is  not  found  elsewhere  foundation. 


VII.  11-28] 


HEBREWS 


51 


another.  It  should  be  noticed 
that  here,  and  again  in  v.  15,  the 
Greek  word  translated  "another" 
is  the  word  which  means  not  "a 
second"  but  "a  dififerent"  one. 

12,  13.  For... For.  There  are 
two  steps  in  the  argument.  He 
proves  first  that  the  words  of  the 
Psalm  imply  a  radical  change  in 
the  conditions  of  the  priesthood; 
and  then  that  this  carries  with  it 
the  conclusion  that  the  Law,  of 
which  the  priesthood  was  a  founda- 
tion, was  also  sheAvn  to  be  temporary. 
The  "For"  of  v.  12  justifies  the  re- 
lation assumed  in  ».  11  between  the 
priesthood  and  the  Law.  The  "  For" 
of  p.  13  jui)tifies  the  statement  that 
the  conditions  of  the  priesthood  have 
been  changed.  "We  notice  that  in 
this  argument  the  writer  is  speaking 
as  to  convinced  Christians  and  has 
passed  from  the  prophecy  to  the 
fulfilment.  He  assumes  that  Jesus 
is  the  promised  "Priest  after  the 
order  of  Melchizedek"  and  then 
points  out  that  He  was  of  a  Tribe 
which  had  no  priestly  functions 
under  the  Law.  It  is  also  implied 
though  not  expressed  in  words,  that 
the  words  "of  the  order  of  Mel- 
chizedek" had  included  the  sense 
of  "not  of  the  tribe  of  Levi." 

14.  fmth  sprung.  The  verb  in 
the  Greek  has  a  sense  of  still 
living  metaphor  which  "to  spring" 
has  lost  in  English ;  and  the  figure 
is  probably  of  a  growing  plant — 
after  the  prophetic  image  of  "  the 
Branch,"  Zech.  iii.  8,  Isaiah  xi.  1. 
The  verb  is  also  used  of  the  rising 
of  a  star  or  the  sun,  and  some  have 
preferred  that  figure  her©.  Cp. 
Numb.  xxiv.  17,  Isaiah  Ix.  1  and 
the  "dayspring"  of  Luke  i.  78. 

1 5.  [;ujhat  we  say.']  As  the  italics 
indicate,  the  subject  of  the  sentence 
is  not  expressed  in  the  Greek.   A.V. 


inserts  "  it"  It  is  the  general  truth 
(which  has  been  suggested,  but  is 
not  clearly  stated  till  vv.  18,  19)  that 
this  prophecy  of  Ps.  ex.  really  im- 
plies the  supersession  of  the  Law 
by  the  Gospel. 

after  the  likeness,  i.e.  in  this 
second  point,  viz.  the  mode  of  His 
appointment.  The  argument  is  that 
in  the  case  of  the  Levitical  priest 
this  turned  upon  conditions  ("a 
carnal  commandment")  which  be- 
long to  this  present  life  in  the  flesh, 
conditions  of  relationship,  succes- 
sion, ceremonial  purity,  and  the  like. 
The  picture  of  the  Melchizedek 
priesthood  belongs  entirely  to  the 
eternal  world. 

18, 19.  It  will  be  noticed  that  R.  V. 
has  altered  and  improved  the  sense 
by  making  "  and  a  bringing  in  of  a 
better  hope"  dependent  (together 
with  "a  disannulling  of  a  foregoing 
commandment")  on  "there  is"  in 
V.  18,  and  by  throwing  "for  the 
law,  &c."  into  a  parenthesis.  A.V. 
does  violence  to  the  Greek  and 
confuses  the  thought. 

18.  there  is ;  rather  "there  comes 
about."  The  meaning  is  that  this 
happy  revolution  is  implied  in  the 
prophecy  of  Ps.  ex. 

commandment.  It  is  the  same 
word  as  'm.v.  16,  "[carnal]  command- 
ment " ;  and  the  special  command- 
ment spoken  of  is  the  same,  viz.  the 
commandment  which  constituted  the 
Levitical  priesthood :  but  it  is  treated 
as  the  equivalent  to  the  whole  system 
of  sacrifice  and  propitiation. 

because  of  its  weakness.  Rom. 
viii.  3,  "in  that  it  was  weak."  It 
is  interesting  to  compare  the  two 
passages,  which  agree  in  speaking 
of  the  weakness  or  ineflScacy  of  the 
Law,  but  differ  characteristically  in 
point  of  view.  St  Paul  is  concerned 
with  the  powerlessness  of  the  Law  to 

4—2 


52 


HEBREWS 


[VII.  11-28 


procure  righteousness :  the  diflSculty 
in  the  way  is  the  weakness  of  the 
flesh:  the  Law  did  not  bring,  as 
grace  did,  new  power  to  obey.  The 
present  writer  is  concerned  with  its 
powerlessness  to  provide  an  adequate 
Atonement  and  so  ease  the  con- 
science :  the  difficulty  in  the  way 
is  the  impossibility  that  material 
sacrifices  should  take  away  sin  which 
was  concerned  with  the  spiritual 
sphere. 


19.  we  draw  nigh  (eyyi^onep). 
This  is  a  different  verb  from  that 
translated  "draw  near";  see  on 
ch.  iv.  16.  It  implies  a  special 
closeness  of  access,  being  used  in 
Exodus  distinctively  of  the  priest- 
hood. The  writer  is  near  to  the 
assertion  which  we  shall  meet  in 
ch.  X.  of  the  universal  priesthood 
of  Christians. 


(2)     "  The  Lord  sware."    (20-22.) 

20  And  inasmuch  as  it  is  not  without  the  taking  of  an 

21  oath  (for  they  indeed  have  been  made  priests  without  an 
oath ;  but  he  with  an  oath  ^by  him  that  saith  ^of  him, 

The  Lord  sware  and  will  not  repent  himself, 
Thou  art  a  priest  for  ever) ; 

22  by  so  much  also  hath  Jesus  become  the  surety  of  a  better 
^covenant. 


1  Or,  through 


2  Or,  to 


^  Or,  testament 


(2)    vv.  20-22.     The  point  is  that  the  solemnity  given   by  the  oath 
implies  that  it  was  a  better  and  surer  covenant  that  was  to  be  introduced. 


20.  [i7/5.]  Something,  represented 
in  R.V.  by  "it  is,"  has  to  be  supplied, 
and  this  (it  is  evident  from  what 
follows)  is  "  He  has  been  made 
priest." 

22.  by  so  much.  These  words 
go  in  sense  with  "better":  the 
added  solemnity  of  God's  oath  is 
the  measure  of  the  greater  perfec- 
tion of  the  Covenant  which  it  in- 
troduced. 

surety.  The  phrase  is  varied  in 
viii.  6,  ix.  15,  xii.  24  to  "mediator." 


A  "mediator"  of  a  covenant  is  one 
who  intervenes  as  a  third  party  to 
bring  about  the  agreement.  The 
phrase  "surety,"  or  guarantor,  adds 
that  he  intervenes  to  the  extent  of 
offering  security  to  each  for  the 
proper  performance  by  the  other. 

a  better  covenant ;  the  "new  cove- 
nant" of  Jer.  xxxi.  The  writer  is 
feehng  his  way  to  that  quotation, 
just  as  the  prophecy  of  Ps.  ex. 
coloured  his  language  before  it 
appeared  definitely  in  the  argument. 


VII.  11-28]  HEBREWS  53 

(3)    ''For  ever."    (23-25.) 

23  And  they  indeed  have  been  made  priests  many  in 
number,  because  that  by  death  they  are  hindered  from 

24  continuing:  but  he,  because  he  abideth  for  ever,  ^hath  his 

25  priesthood  ^ unchangeable.  Wherefore  also  he  is  able  to 
save  ^to  the  uttermost  them  that  dravr  near  unto  God 
through  him,  seeing  he  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession 
for  theuL 

1  Or,  hath  a  priesthood  that  doth  not  pass  to  another  ^  Or,  inviolable 

^  Gr.  completely. 

(3)  vv.  23-25,  "for  ever."  We  are  looking  at  these  words  again,  not 
now  as  referring  to  the  conditions  of  appointment  (with  which  we  dealt 
under  (1))  but  generally  to  the  permanent  character  of  the  priesthood. 

23.  they,  i.e.  the  Levitical  priests.         25.    save  to  the  uttermost.    There 

24.  for    ever.      The    writer    is      are  no  limits  (so  Westcott)  to  the 
quoting  the  Psalm.  progi-essive  (this  is  the  force  of  the 

uncJmngeahle.     Marg.  inviolable.  present  tense)  salvation  (the  rescue 

The  word  is  a  rare  one.     Btymo-  from  all  evil,  and  so  the  leading  to  all 

logically    it    might    mean    (and    it  perfection)  of  humanity,  if  men  will 

possibly    may    have    meant    here)  address  themselves  through  Him  to 

"that   cannot   pass    over,"   i.e.    in-  the  Father;  for  He  is  the  "Priest 

transmissible.      Its  usual   meaning  for  ever,"  He  lives  for  ever,  and  the 

is  the  passive  one,  "  that  cannot  be  very  purpose  of  His  Life  in  Heaven 

passed    over,"    "beyond    invasion,"  is  to  be  pleading  for  them, 
and  so,  metaphorically,  "  inviolable  " 
01-,  more  freely  still,  "unchangeable." 


Summing  up.    (26-28.) 

26  For  such  an  high  priest  became  us,  holy,  guileless,  un- 
defiled,  separated  fi'om  sinners,  and  made  higher  than 

27  the  heavens ;  who  needeth  not  daily,  like  those  high 
priests,  to  offer  up  sacrifices,  first  for  his  own  sins,  and 
then  for  the  sins  of  the  people :  for  this  he  did  once  for 

28  all,  when  he  offered  up  himself.  For  the  law  appointeth 
men  high  priests,  having  infirmity;  but  the  word  of  the 
oath,  which  was  after  the  law,  appointeth  a  Son,  perfected 
for  evermore. 


54  HEBREWS  [vii.  11-28 

General  Note  on  VII.  26-28. 

"A  priest  diflFerent  from,  and  of  a  higher  order  than  the  Levitical 
priests — able  therefore  to  do  what  they  could  not  do."  So,  starting  from 
the  emphatic  phrases  of  the  last  sentence,  "  save  to  the  uttermost,"  "  ever 
living,"  the  vrriter  sums  up  the  argument  of  the  preceding  paragraph — but 
several  things  are  added. 

1.  In  the  VFords  "became  us"  which  carry  us  back  to  ch.  ii.  10.  It  is 
the  second  time  that  this  verb  has  been  used  in  such  a  connexion.  In  both 
cases  he  is  turning  from  legal  and  typical  aspects  to  the  eternal  relation 
between  God  and  man.  In  ii.  10  he  was  justifying  a  real  Incarnation,  the 
true  humanity  of  the  Christ :  it  "  became  "  God ;  it  was  what  God's  Nature 
demanded.  And  so  here  again  he  is  justifying  what,  as  before,  the  Jewish 
prejudices  of  his  readers  found  difficulty  in  accepting,  the  priestly  work  of 
the  Christ.     It  "  became  us."    It  was  what  our  human  nature  demanded. 

2.  In  the  prominence  given  to  the  moral  qualities  of  the  ideal  High 
Priest.  It  is  perhaps  in  his  mind  that  the  true  High  Priest  (see  note  on 
V.  26)  possesses  in  substance  the  characteristics  which  in  the  Levitical  High 
Priest  were  typically  represented. 

3.  In  the  words  of  v.  27,  "when  he  offered  up  himself."  It  is  the 
custom  of  this  Epistle  by  single  phrases  dropped,  as  it  seems,  incidentally 
and  not  pursued,  to  give  indication  of  the  future  course  of  the  argument. 
There  is  a  striking  instance  here.  "We  are  about  to  pass  in  ch.  viii.  from  the 
personality  of  the  ideal  High  Priest  to  l^is  functions;  and  the  first  question 
will  be,  "What  sacrifices  has  He  to  ofl"er?"  That  vdll  be  answered  eventually 
(see  ch.  ix.  12,  14,  25,  28,  x.  10)  by  the  full  setting  forth  of  the  Sacrifice  of 
the  Cross;  but  that  answer  is  anticipated  here  in  the  words  "when  he 
oflFered  up  himself" 

4.  In  the  contrast  of  v.  2%;  where  we  seem  to  have  an  echo  of  ch.  v.  5,  6, 
i.e.  to  be  setting  side  by  side  the  prophecy  of  Ps.  ex.,  which  has  just  been 
expounded,  and  the  prophecy  of  Ps.  ii.,  "  Thou  art  my  Son."  It  is  the  final 
justification  of  the  supreme  place  assigned  to  the  "  Priest  after  the  order  of 
Melchizedek." 

26.  For.  The  writer  is  summing  interest  that  the  three  Greek  words 
up  the  whole  argument.  That  "such  chosen  are  words  which  may  gene- 
a  High  Priest  became  us"  is  the  rally  be  said  to  belong  specially  to 
final  justification  of  the  whole  pic-  the  three  Books  for  which  the  writer 
ture  which  he  has  presented  of  the  of  this  Epistle  shews  particular  fond- 
Greater  High  Priest.  ness,  the  Psalter,  the  Pi-overbs,  and 

holy,   guileless,   undefiled.      The  the  Book  of  Wisdom, 

three  words  indicate  His  perfection  separated  from,  sinners.    There  is 

severally  as  towards  God  (it  is  the  perhaps  a  tacit  comparison  between 

word  [ocrtoy]  which  means  holy  in  the  Levitical  High  Priests,  who  in 

character,  as  contrasted  with  ayio^,  figure    were    set    apart    from    the 

holy  in  the  sense  of  consecration  to  general   order  of   sinful   men  and 

holy   use),    towards  men,    towards  raised  to  a  level  above  them,  yet 

Himself    It  has  been  noted  as  of  who  were  still  reaUy   "compassed 


VII.  11-28] 


HEBREWS 


55 


with  infirmity"  (ch.  v.  2),  and  the  Son 
who  was  "perfected,"  i.e.  completely 
fitted,  not  in  figure  only,  for  His 
office.  DuBose  {High  Priesthood 
and  Sacrifice,  p.  79)  comments  on  the 
expression,  noting  that  the  word  is 
in  the  perfect  passive  participle, 
and  "signifies,  not  separate  by  nature, 
but  separated,"  "self-separated  and 
God-separated" ;  "the  whole  stress  of 
the  Epistle  is  not  so  much  on  what 
our  Lord  is,  as  upon  the  distinctly 
human — and  yet  not  at  all  on  that 
account  the  less  divine — act  and 
process  by  which  He  became  what 
He  is." 

made  higher  than  the  heavens. 
See  note  on  iv.  14. 

27.  daily.  It  is  asked,  why 
"daily,"  seeing  that  the  typical 
sacrifice  offered  by  the  High  Priest 
for  his  own  sins  was  only  "once  in 
the  year"  (ix.   7)?    It  is  answered 

(1)  that  the  words,  in  the  Greek 
even  more  evidently  than  in  the 
English,  are  ordered  so  that  "daily" 
is  made  to  belong  t»  "needeth" 
rather   than   to    "offer    sacrifices"; 

(2)  that  the  sacrifice  is  needed  as 
a  condition  of  effective  intercession, 
and  that  it  has  been  expressly  said 
that  the  ideal  High  Priest  offers 
His  intercession  (not  once  a  year, 
which  was  part  of  the  typical  ordi- 
nance, but)  perpetually.  The  need 
therefore,  if  it  existed  at  all,  would 
be  a  perpetual  need. 

At  the  same  time,  when  we  re- 
member that  the  image  of  the  High 
Priest,  though  the  part  which  it 
plays  is  so  important,  passes  (as 
the  Epistle  goes  on)  into  the  more 
general  figures  of  the  whole  sacri- 
ficial system  (see  ch.  x.  11,  "every 
priest  standeth  day  by  day  minis- 
tering, &c."),  it  is  difficult  to  deny 
that  the  expression  may  be  coloured 
unconsciously  by  the  thought  of  the 


daily  sacrifice,  even  though  that  was 
not  offered  by  the  High  Priest  and 
contained  no  special  recognition  of 
the  sins  of  the  priest  who  offered  it. 
this  he  did.  Grammatically  "  this  " 
should  cover  the  sacrifice  "for  his 
own  sins"  as  well  as  that  "for  the 
sins  of  the  people."  Is  there  any  valid 
reason  why  we  should  do  violence 
to  the  grammar,  and  make  it  apply 
only  to  the  second  clause  ?  The 
^vriter  is  careful  in  any  case  to  make 
it  clear  beyond  misconception  that 
in  the  case  of  the  ideal  High  Priest 
there  is  not  in  fact  any  personal  sin 
to  be  atoned  for  (iv.  15,  vii.  26).  On 
the  other  hand  the  natural  conclu- 
sion from  the  unqualified  statement 
of  ch.  V.  3  is  that  there  is  something 
in  the  case  of  the  perfect  High 
Priest  which  answers,  as  antitype 
answers  to  type,  to  the  requirement 
of  the  human  and  typical  High  Priest 
that  he  should  "as  for  the  people, 
so  also  for  himself  offer  for  sins." 
The  reconciliation  is  not  worked  out 
in  the  Epistle.  We  are  dealing  with 
figiu'es,  and  figures  of  eternal  things- 
But  the  direction  which  any  solution 
would  take  seems  to  be  indicated  in 
the  quotation  from  Ps.  xl.  (in  ch.  x.), 
which  is  intended  to  be  the  last 
word  in  the  whole  matter,  and  which 
throws  so  much  light  on  the  sacri- 
ficial language  of  the  Epistle.  There 
was  no  sacrifice  for  "his  own  sins," 
in  the  literal,  human  sense ;  for  there 
could  be  no  such  sin  to  atone  for. 
But  there  had  been  real  temptation, 
a  real  mutual  confronting  of  the 
human  and  divine  will  ("not  my 
will  but  thine  be  done");  and  so, 
though  there  was  no  sin,  there  was 
what  answered  to  the  typical  sacri- 
fice of  the  Levitical  High  Priest 
for  "his  own  sins"  in  the  eternal 
sacrifice  by  the  Divine  Son  of  His 
own  will:   "Lo  I  come  to  do  thy 


56  HEBREWS  [vii.  11-28 

will..."  "He  taketh  away  the  first,  human    priests    who    "have    iiifir- 

that  he  may  establish  the  second."  mity,"   but    it  is  the    word  which 

28.    a  Son.    See  on  ch.  i.  2.  sums  up  the  contrast  upon  which 

perfected.    Cp.  ii.  10,  v.  9.     A.V.  we  have  been  dwelling.     In  every 

translates  here  "consecrated,"  and  point  of  personality,  of  character, 

the  verb  admits  that  sense,  derived  of  position,  His  quahfications  were 

from  the  simpler  meaning  of  "  fully  perfect,  while  they  were  "compassed 

qualified    for    the    purpose."      But  with    infirmity,"    His   quahfications 

here  it  is  more  general.     It  is  in  were  the  substance,  theirs  only  the 

particular     comparison     with     the  types  and  shadows. 


Introductory  Note  to  ch.  VIII. 

In  ch.  viii.  (as  usually  in  the  Epistle,  without  formal  transition)  we  open 
a  new  section  of  the  argument.  We  are  dealing  still  with  the  comparison, 
begun  in  iv.  14,  of  the  Christ  to  Aaron.  He  is  the  "  High  Priest  of  our 
confession"  (iii.  1),  and  the  "gi-eat  High  Priest  (iv.  14),  of  an  "order" 
indefinitely  higher  than  that  of  the  Levitical  high  priests.  Up  to  this 
point  the  comparison  which  was  to  make  good  those  assertions  has  turned 
on  the  mode  and  conditions  of  appointment,  the  relation  to  God  and  to 
men,  the  moral  characteristics  really  inherent  or  typically  represented  in 
the  High  Priest.  We  are  now  to  pass  fi-om  his  personality  to  his  functions. 
These  have  been  in  general  terms  assumed  from  the  beginning  of  the 
Epistle,  as  in  i.  3,  "when  he  had  made  purification  of  sins,"  ii.  17,  "to  make 
propitiation  for  the  sins  of  the  people."  There  has  been  throughout  a 
reference  (it  is  at  the  bottom  of  the  tacit  substitution  [see  on  v.  10] 
of  "High  Priest"  for  "Priest"  in  the  quotation  from  Ps.  ex.)  to  the  special 
function  of  the  Levitical  High  Priest  on  the  Day  of  Atonement.  But 
there  have  been  also  from  time  to  time  expressions  which  have  pointed  to 
the  writer's  fuU  purpose  to  exhibit  the  Person  and  Work  of  Christ  as 
fulfilling  in  the  spiritual  sphere,  and  therefore  as  replacing,  the  whole 
priestly  and  sacrificial  system  of  the  Law.  This  is  what  is  now  to  be  made 
good.  The  writer  approaches  it  therefore  in  two  stages.  Before  proceeding 
in  ch.  ix.  to  deal  with  it  in  detail,  he  seeks  to  put  in  a  form  which  would 
least  shock  and  pei-plex  liis  readers  two  principles,  which  are  evidently 
involved  in  his  teaching,  and  which  in  themselves  would  rouse  the  strongest 
opposition.  His  method  is  the  same  as  in  the  preceding  section.  Just  as 
there  he  had  throvm  his  argument  on  the  Personality  of  the  divine  High 
Priest  into  the  form  of  a  comment  or  a  pi-ophecy  traced  to  the  mouth 
of  David,  and  dravring  its  figure  from  the  story  of  Abraham,  so  now  he 
commends  what  he  has  to  say  of  the  Heavenly  Tabernacle  and  the  Better 
Covenant  by  putting  them  in  the  words  and  under  the  authority  of  a 
passage  from  the  history  of  Moses,  and  a  central  prophecy  of  Jeremiah. 


viii.  1-6]  HEBREWS  67 


VIII.  1-6.    Functions  of  the  Greater  High  Priest. 

VIII.  1  ^Now  ^iii  the  things  which  we  are  saying  the  chief 
point  is  this :  We  have  such  a  high  priest,  who  sat  down 
on  the  right  hand  of  the  throne  of  the  Majesty  in  the 

2  heavens,  a  minister  of  the  ^sanctuary,  and  of  the  true 

3  tabernacle,  which  the  Lord  pitched,  not  man.  For  every 
high  priest  is  appointed  to  offer  both  gifts  and  sacrifices : 
wherefore  it  is  necessary  that  this  high  priest  also  have 

4  someAvhat  to  offer.  Now  if  he  were  on  earth,  he  would 
not  be  a  priest  at  all,  seeing  there  are  those  who  offer  the 

5  gifts  according  to  the  law ;  who  serve  that  which  is  a 
copy  and  shadow  of  the  heavenly  things,  even  as  Moses 
is  warned  of  God  when  he  is  about  to  ^make  the  tabernacle : 
for,  See,  saith  he,  that  thou  make  all  things  according  to 

6  the  pattern  that  was  shewed  thee  in  the  mount.  But  now 
hath  he  obtained  a  ministry  the  more  excellent,  by  how 
much  also  he  is  the  mediator  of  a  better  ^covenant,  which 
hath  been  enacted  upon  better  promises. 

^  Or,  Now  to  sum  up  what  we  are  saying :  we  have,  d'c.  "  Gr.  upon. 

^  Or,  holy  things  ^  Or,  complete  ®  Or,  testament 

VIII.    1.    Now... [is  this].     More  viz.  to  the  question  of  the  functions 

literally  and  better  ("is  this"  is  not  in  of  the  ideal  Priest. 

theGreek),  "Butasacrown(i.e.toput  tcho  sat  down,  <&c.     The  expres- 

a  crown)  upon  what  we  are  saying — ."  sion   "on  the  right  hand  of  the... 

The  translation   "sum"  (A.V.   and  Majesty  in  the  heavens "  is  intended 

margin   of   II.V.)  would  require  a  (as  Westcott  suggests)  to  take  us 

genitive  case,  "  of  the  things,  &c."  back  to  ch.  i.  3.      "  The  writer  is  at 

instead  of  the  preposition  and  dative  length  able  to  repeat,  after  gaining 

case,  "  upon  the  things,  &c."     The  a  full  view  of  the  significance  of  the 

sense  also  requires  a  phrase  which  statement,  what  he  said  at  the  be- 

looks  forward  instead  of  back.     The  ginning." 

writer  starts,   no  doubt,  from  the  the    sanctuary,    lit.    "the    Holy 

point  which  he  has  attained,  "  such  [Place]."    It  is  used  (as  in  ch.  ix.  8, 

a  high  priest,"  i.e.  such  as  he  has  12,  24,  x.  19,  xiii.   11)  for  what  is 

described;    but  the  weight  of  the  called  in  ix.  3  "the  Holy  of  Holies," 

sentence  is  in  its  last  clause,   "a  in  Exod.  xxvi.   34  "the  most  holy 

minister,  &c."     He  is  not  going  to  place."    The  epithet  "  true  "  belongs 

sum  up  again  what  has  been  already  to  the  sanctuary,  which  is  part  of 

said  but  is  passing  to  a  new  depart-  the  tabernacle,   as  well  as  to  the 

ment  of  the   argument,   which  he  tabernacle  as  a  whole, 

feels  to  be  of  capital  importance,  true;  as  opposed  to  "copies  and 


58 


HEBREWS 


[viii.  1-6 


shadows  "  (v.  5  and  see  ix.  24).  It  is 
a  word  characteristic  of,  though  not 
confined  to,  St  John's  Gospel,  "the 
true  light,"  i.  9,  "the  true  vine,"  xv.  1. 
which  the  Lord  pitched.  As  it  is 
put  in  ix.  11,  the  "tabernacle  not 
made  with  hands."  "  Pitched"  is  the 
word  used  (as  in  Exod.  xxxiii.  7) 
of  the  erection  by  Moses  of  the 
Tabernacle  in  the  wilderness.  "The 
Lord"  is  used  in  the  O.T.  sense  of 
the  phrase. 

3.  somewhat  to  offer.  What  is 
He  to  oflFer?  The  Epistle  itself 
(ch.  ix.  25)  answers  "  Himself."  It 
should  be  noted  (as  a  point  which 
translation  cannot  reproduce)  that 
the  verb  in  the  Greek  is  not  in  the 
present  tense,  but  in  the  aorist; 
i.e.  it  represents  a  single  and  com- 
plete, not  a  continuing  or  recurrent 
act.  The  bearing  of  this  is  made 
clear  in  ix.  25,  26,  where  it  is  argued 
that  this  offering  of  Christ  is  not  to 
be  viewed  as  something  repeated; 
otherwise  His  suflFering  must  have 
been  repeated. 

4,  5.  The  argument  is  "He  is  a 
High  Priest:  but  if  so.  He  must 
have  some  function  of  sacrifice.  You 
say.  Where  ?  Not  on  earth,  even  if 
He  were  here :  for  the  place  is  occu- 
pied. The  Levitical  priests  ofi"er 
in  the  earthly  tabernacle.  But  the 
earthly  tabernacle  is  not  the  only 
one.  It  is  (so  the  history  of  Moses 
himself  told  us)  itself  only  a  copy — a 
copy  of  something  heavenly,  spiritual. 
It  is  in  that  heavenly  sanctuary  that 
our  High   Priest  serves;    and   His 


ministry  therefore  is  not  a  less  but 
a  more  excellent  one." 

5.  Moses  is  warned.  Exod.  xxv. 
40,  xxvi.  30,  xxvii.  8,  Numb.  viii.  4. 
It  is  a  point  of  the  tradition  which 
is  recalled  in  St  Stephen's  speech, 
Acts  vii.  44.  It  will  be  noticed  that 
the  words  "of  God"  are  printed  in 
italics  (as  in  xi.  7)  as  being  an 
addition  to  the  original.  The  truth 
is  that,  though  they  are  not  actually 
present  in  the  Greek,  the  verb  is 
used  by  itself  of  supernatural  com- 
munications, as  by  oracles,  dreams, 
&c.     See  Matt.  ii.  12,  &c. 

is  warned.  The  tense  in  the  Greek 
is  perfect,  "hath  been  warned,"  i.e. 
"we  read  in  Scripture  of  his  being 
warned " :  see  on  ch.  vii.  6. 

6.  This  verse,  in  putting  the  "new 
covenant"  by  the  side  of  the  heavenly 
"ministry,"  takes  us  back  to  the 
double  aspect  of  the  Christ  as  set 
forth  ch.  iii.  1,  "the  Apostle  and 
High  Priest,"  the  Moses  as  well  as 
the  Aaron  "of  our  confession." 
Moses  is  not  actually  named,  but 
the  "Mediator"  (that  is,  of  the 
Covenant)  was  a  recognized  Jewish 
title  for  him  (see  Lightfoot  on  Gal. 
iii.  19),  and  there  is  an  implied 
reference  to  him  also  here  as  the 
Law-giver. 

enacted.  The  verb  (used  before 
in  vii.  11)  means  "to  legislate."  The 
word  here  implies  that  the  new 
Covenant,  like  the  old  one,  is  em- 
bodied in  a  scheme  of  law.  In 
other  words,  Christ  is  the  Law-giver 
as  well  as  the  Mediator. 


VIII.  7-13]  HEBREWS  59 

VIII.  7-13.    The  New  Covenant. 

7  For  if  that  first  covenant  had  been  faultless,  then  would 

8  no  place  have  been  sought  for  a  second.    For,  finding 
fault  with  them,  he  saith. 

Behold  the  days  come,  saith  the  Lord, 
That   I   will   ^make  a  new  ^covenant  with   the  house 
of  Israel  and  with  the  house  of  Judah  ; 

9  Not  according  to  the  ^covenant  that  I  made  with  their 

fathers 
In  the  day  when  I  took  them  by  the  hand  to  lead 

them  forth  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt; 
For  they  continued  not  in  my  covenant. 
And  I  regarded  them  not,  saith  the  Lord. 

10  For  this  is  the  ^covenant  that  ^I  wiU  make  with  the 

house  of  Israel 
After  those  days,  saith  the  Lord; 
I  will  put  my  laws  into  their  mind. 
And  on  their  heart  also  will  I  write  them; 
And  I  will  be  to  them  a  God, 
And  they  shall  be  my  people: 

11  And  they  shall  not  teach  every  man  his  fellow-citizen, 
And  every  man  his  brother,  saying,  Know  the  Lord  : 
For  all  shall  know  me. 

From  the  least  to  the  gi-eatest  of  them. 

12  For  I  will  be  merciful  to  their  iniquities, 
And  their  sins  will  I  remember  no  more. 

13  In  that  he  saith,  A  new  covenant,  he  hath  made  the  first 
old.  But  that  which  is  becoming  old  and  waxeth  aged  is 
nigh  unto  vanishing  away. 

^  Gr.  accomplish.  ^  Or,  testament.  ^  Gr.  I  will  covenant. 

General  Note  on  VIII.  7-13. 

The  value  of  the  prophecy  for  the  ■vvriter's  purpose  lies  not  only  in  the 
promise  but  also  in  the  picture  given  of  the  new  Covenant.  It  spoke  of  a 
more  effectual  reconciliation,  of  a  law  WTitten  on  the  heart,  of  sin  forgiven 
and  forgotten.  Since,  then,  this  was  what  the  older  Revelation  had  led 
men  to  look  for,  the  way  was  open  to  explain  that  the  new  Revelation  ful- 
filled those  anticipations. 


60 


HEBREWS 


[viii.  7-13 


The  name  of  Jeremiah  is  not  mentioned :  but  this  is  the  writer's  practice 
with  quotation.  On  the  other  hand,  to  those  who  were  familiar  with  the  words 
there  was  a  special  appropriateness  both  in  the  prophet  and  in  the  prophecy. 
They  were  the  words  of  the  sad  seer  and  patriot  whose  personal  misfortunes 
were  recognized  as  giving  liim  a  peculiar  power  of  sympathy;  to  whom  in 
days  of  trouble  the  thoughts  of  his  nation  went  back,  as  they  had  done  in  the 
time  of  the  Maccabees  (2  Mace.  xv.  14,  "this  is  the  lover  of  the  brethren, 
who  prayeth  much  for  the  people  and  for  the  holy  city,  to  wit,  Jeremias  the 
prophet  of  God."  Cp.  Matt.  xvi.  14).  The  prophecy  is  the  great,  con- 
fessedly Messianic,  prophecy  of  Jer.  xxx.-xxxiii.  given  as  the  comfort  of 
the  people  in  a  time  of  distress  and  dissolution  very  like  to  that  through 
which  the  Hebrew  Christians  were  passing. 


7.  would  no  place  have  teen 
sought,  i.e.  words  would  not  have 
been  used  in  Holy  Scripture  pointing 
out  the  room  for  a  new  Covenant. 

8.  finding  fault.  The  phrase  is 
chosen  to  coirespond  vrith  the 
preceding  "faultless."  It  is  more 
emphatic  in  the  Greek,  being  placed 
first  in  the  sentence:  "for  fault  he 
is  finding... when  he  says."  The  cor- 
respondence is  not  verbally  exact, 
for  "mth  them"  must  mean  "with 
the  people,"  whereas  it  was  the 
Covenant  which,  it  was  said,  should 
have  been  faultless.  But  the  two 
faults  cannot  be  separated.  If  the 
Covenant  had  been  effectual  there 
would  not  have  been  the  defects  in 
the  people  which  caused  the  need 
of  a  new  Covenant. 

he.  See  note  on  ch.  ii.  5 :  but 
here  the  Person  is  evident  from  the 
following  verse,  "saith  the  Lord." 
The  prophecy  is  from  Jer.  xxxi.  31  f 

/  will  make.  As  is  noticed  in  the 
margin  the  literal  translation  is  "I 
will  accomplish."  It  is  not  the  word 
in  the  LXX,  which  has  here  the 
simpler  word  used  in  v.  10 ;  but  it 
is  a  word  used  elsewhere  by  the 
prophet  in  such  a  connexion,  and 


the  sense  that  he  was  speaking  of  a 
final  and  effective  covenant  brought 
it  to  the  writer's  mind  here. 

a  new  covenant.  There  are  two 
words  in  Greek  which  are  trans- 
lated by  "new" — one  that  means 
"  new  in  kind,"  the  other  that  means 
only  "new  in  time,"  "recent."  The 
first  is  the  one  used  here.  Cp. 
V.  13  and  ch.  ix.  15.  The  second, 
which  is  equally  applicable  but  does 
not  convey  as  full  a  sense,  occurs  in 
this  connexion  in  xii.  24. 

9.  took  thetn  by  the  hand.  See 
on  ch.  ii.  16. 

And  I  regarded  them  not.  These 
words  follow  the  LXX.  The  Hebrew 
text  had  "  although  I  was  a  husband 
unto  them." 

13.  is  hecom,ing  old  and  waxeth 
aged.  Tlie  two  phrases  describe 
severally  the  process  of  (1)  becoming, 
in  fashion  and  estimation,  a  thing  of 
the  past,  (2)  feeling  internally  (as 
the  human  frame  feels)  the  touch 
of  old  age.  The  writer  claims 
Jeremiah  not  only  as  a  prophet  of 
the  future  supersession  of  the  Mosaic 
Covenant,  but  as  a  witness  that  it 
was  already  in  his  own  time  shewing 
signs  of  decay  and  dissolution. 


IX.  1-10]  HEBREWS  61 

Introductory  Note  to  ch.  IX.  and  X.  1-18. 

The  way  has  now  been  prepared  by  the  two  appeals  to  accepted 
principles  of  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures,  to  the  record  of  Moses  that 
the  Tabernacle  and  its  ordinances  were  never  meant  to  be  more  than 
"  copies  and  shadows "  of  far  more  august  things  in  the  heavenly  sphere ; 
and  to  the  prophecy  of  Jeremiah  which  spoke  of  a  new  and  better  covenant 
which  should  lead  to  a  real  redemption  from  sin.  The  time  has  come 
therefore  when  the  writer  feels  himself  ready  to  Advance  to  the  assertion, 
to  which  everything  has  been  leading,  of  the  entire  supersession  of  the 
Levitical  system.  He  begins  by  allowing  to  the  full  the  beauty  and  historic 
dignity  of  the  Mosaic  ritual,  the  apparently  rich  provision  made  in  it  for 
reconciliation  and  access  to  God.  But  he  points  out  also  that  in  its  very 
structure  the  Tabeniacle  had  taught  from  the  beginning  the  imperfect 
nature  of  that  access :  it  was  periodical,  representative,  typical.  And  so  the 
sacrifices  are  painted  as  bearing  on  their  face,  in  their  constant  repetition, 
proof  of  their  ineffectiveness :  for  if  they  were  effective,  "  would  they  not 
have  ceased  to  be  off"ered  ? "  We  notice  that  though  the  symbolism  of  the 
Day  of  Atonement  still  colours  much  of  the  phraseology,  it  is  made  clear 
(see  ix.  9,  10,  13,  22,  x.  11)  that  it  is  not  a  single  point  in  the  ritual,  but  the 
whole  sacrificial  scheme  that  is  in  issue.  We  notice  also  that  there  comes 
at  times  into  the  language  a  tone  almost  of  bitterness :  "  things  to  eat  and 
to  drink  and  difi"erent  kinds  of  washing... ordinances  of  the  flesh"  (ix.  10), 
"  impossible  that  the  blood  of  bulls  and  goats  should  take  away  sin " 
(x.  4,  11).  We  notice  also  that  as  the  argimient  ends  the  writer  falls  back 
on  his  old  method,  and  rests  the  justification  of  his  strongest  assertions  on 
principles  drawn  from  the  older  Scriptures,  from  Ps.  xl.,  Ps.  ex.,  and 
Jer.  xxxi. 


IX.  1-10.    Ritual  of  the  Old  Covenant — 

ITS  CONFESSED  IMPERFECTIONS. 

IX.  1  Now  even  the  first  covenant  had  ordinances  of  divine 

2  service,  and  its  sanctuary,  a  sanctuary  of  this  world.  For 
there  was  a  tabernacle  prepared,  the  first,  wherein  ^luere 
the  candlestick,  and  the  table,  and  ^the  shewbread  ;  which 

3  is  called  the  Holy  place.     And  after  the  second  veil,  the 

4  tabernacle  which  is  called  the  Holy  of  holies  ;  having  a 
golden  ^censer,  and  the  ark  of  the  covenant  overlaid  round 
about  with  gold,  wherein  *ivas  a  golden  pot  holding  the 
manna,  and  Aaron's  rod  that  budded,  and  the  tables  of 

5  the  covenant ;  and  above  it  cherubim  of  glory  over- 
shadowing ^the  mercy-seat ;    of  which  things  we  cannot 

6  now  speak  severally.     Now  these  things  having  been  thus 


62 


HEBREWS 


[IX.  1-10 


prepared,   the  priests  go  in  continually  into  the    first 

7  tabernacle,  accomplishing  the  services ;  but  into  the 
second  the  high  priest  alone,  once  in  the  year,  not 
without  blood,  which  he   offereth  for  himself,   and  for 

8  the  ^errors  of  the  people  ;  the  Holy  Ghost  this  signifying, 
that  the  way  into  the  holy  place  hath  not  yet  been  made 
manifest,  while  as  the  first  tabernacle  is  yet  standing ; 

9  which  is  a  parable  for  the  time  noiv  present ;  according 
to  which  are  offered  both  gifts  and  sacrifices  that  cannot, 
as  touching  the  conscience,  make  the  worshipper  perfect, 

10  being  only  (with  meats  and  drinks  and  divers  washings) 
carnal  ordinances  imposed  until  a  time  of  reformation. 


^  Or,  are 

3  Or,  altar  of  incense 

^  Gr,  the  propitiatory. 


2  Gr.  the  setting  forth  of  the  loaves. 

*  Or,  is 

®  Gr.  ignorances. 


IX.  1.  even  the  first  covenant. 
"I  allow  that  even  under  the  first 
covenant  there  was  ritual  provision 
of  a  kind,  but — ."  The  answering 
"  but"  which,  in  the  Greek,  the  par- 
ticles and  the  order  of  the  words 
presuppose,  is  to  be  found  in  sub- 
stance in  V.  6,  which  is  equivalent  to 
"  the  provision  was  inadequate  and 
only  typical."  We  may  notice  the 
increase  in  boldness  in  the  writer's 
expressions  since  ch.  iv.  2.  There  it 
is,  "  We  have  good  tidings  brought  to 
us,  as  well  as  they."  Here  it  is, 
"Even  under  the  old  dispensation 
there  was  provision  for  atonement." 
As  wiU  be  seen  by  the  italics,  the 
substantive  to  "  first "  has  to  be  sup- 
plied. There  is  no  doubt  that  our 
Versions  rightly  supply  it  by 
"covenant";  but  some  early  editors 
inserted  in  the  text  "  tabernacle." 

its  sanctuary,  its  holy  place,  no 
distinction  being  drawn  in  the  ex- 
pression between  the  so-called  Holy 
Place  and  the  Holy  of  Holies. 

a  sanctuary  of  this  world.  The 
translation  of  the  words  represented 


by  this  phrase  is  encompassed  with 
difficulties. 

(1)  Supposing  the  word  {ko(thik6p) 
which  is  rendered  "of  this  world"  to 
be  an  adjective  and  an  epithet  of 
"sanctuary,"  its  sense  is  doubtful.  It 
is  usually  taken,  as  in  the  text,  to  be 
the  adjective  from  xoV/iios,  in  the  sense 
of  "  the  world  "  (that  is,  in  this  place, 
the  physical  creation).  It  is  then  a 
depreciatoiry  word  :  "  there  was  the 
sanctuary,  but  it  was  a  material 
one,"  i.e.  as  opposed  to  the  spiritual 
Tabernacle,  "  not  of  this  creation,"  of 
V.  1 1.  But  it  must  be  confessed  that 
this  is  not  the  kind  of  epithet  which 
at  the  moment  we  expect.  The 
writer's  aim  in  the  first  instance  is 
to  grant  all  that  can  be  granted  of 
the  first  Tabernacle.  He  dwells  on 
its  manifold  arrangements,  its  pre- 
cious and  costly  contents.  That  this 
character  should  be  summed  up  in  a 
single  epithet  seems  natural  And 
there  is  a  sense  of  the  word  Koa-fn- 
Kos  which  suits  the  purpose  well. 
It  is  a  rare  word,  but  amongst  its 
few   appearances    it    is    found    in 


IX.  1-10] 


HEBREWS 


63 


Josephus  {Bell.  Jud.  iv.  §  5.  2)  as  an 
epithet  of  the  Temple  worship,  and 
there  it  is  evidently  the  adjective  of 
Koa^oi,  in  its  sense  of  "order"  or 
"  beauty  "  :  the  worship  was  "beauti- 
fully ordered." 

(2)  This  is  just  the  sense  needed 
here,  but  meanwhile  a  serious  diffi- 
culty lies  in  the  construction  of  the 
words,  a  difficulty  which  cannot  be 
said  as  yet  to  be  solved.  As  was 
pointed  out  100  years  ago  by  Bp 
Middleton  {On  the  Greek  Article, 
p.  413),  any  rendering  which  makes 
Koa-fjuKov  an  epithet  and  dyiov  a 
substantive,  standing  in  the  order 
in  which  they  do  in  the  sentence, 
is  in  apparent  violation  of  a  well- 
established  rule  of  Greek  syntax. 

The  choice  seems  to  lie  between 
two  com-ses. 

(1)  To  face  this  difficulty  and  sup- 
pose (though  the  parallels  quoted 
are  insufficient  to  establish  clearly 
the  construction)  that  the  Avriter 
meant  to  make  the  double  statement, 
that  the  First  Covenant  had  a 
sanctuary,  and  that  the  sanctuary 
which  it  had  was  beautifully  ordered. 
(Notice  that  if  this  is  right  he  meant 
no  doubt  to  attach  the  description 
"beautifully  ordered"  in  sense  to 
the  "ordinances  of  divine  service" 
as  well  as  to  the  sanctuary.) 

(2)  To  suppose  some  error  of 
copying  which  cannot  be  fully  re- 
stored, or  some  imknown  sense  of 
Koa-fxiKov  which  would  make  it  the 
substantive  and  ayiov  the  adjective, 
"the  holy  — ."  It  has  been  sug- 
gested that  the  original  reading 
may  have  been  rov  ayiov  Koa-fiov — 
"the  holy  beauty"  or  "the  beauty 
of  hohness  " — or  that  koo-^iikov  itself 
may  have  acquired  this  sense :  but 
there  is  no  evidence  to  support  this. 

2.  a  tabernacle.  It  is  to  be 
noticed    that    the    writer    speaks 


throughout  of  the  Tabernacle,  not 
of  the  Temple.  He  is  appealing  to 
his  readers'  knowledge  of  Scripture, 
not  to  their  personal  experience  (see 
Introd.).  His  argument  is  that  by 
the  construction  and  arrangement 
of  the  Tabernacle,  as  contemplated 
and  ordered  in  the  Mosaic  Law  it- 
self, the  principle  was  recognized 
that  the  ritual  to  which  it  belonged 
was  provisional  and  typical.  That 
it  is  the  Sacred  Tent  of  the  wilder- 
ness that  is  in  view  is  evident  from 
the  description  of  its  contents.  The 
"  ark  of  the  covenant,"  according  to 
Jewish  tradition,  was  lost  at  the 
Captivity ;  but  even  in  Solomon's 
Temple  it  is  said  definitely  (1  Kings 
vlii.  9)  to  have  contained  nothing 
but  the  Tables  of  the  Law.  The 
"pot  of  manna"  and  "Aaron's  rod 
that  budded  "  belong  to  the  wilder- 
ness. It  is  said  of  them  (Bxod.  xvi. 
33  and  Numb.  xvii.  10)  that  they 
were  laid  up  "  before  the  testimony." 
That  this  meant  "within  the  ark" 
was  a  matter  of  later  tradition. 

prepared.  See  on  ch.  iii.  3.  The 
word  covers  both  construction  and 
furniture. 

the  first  (cp.  vv.  6  and  8).  The 
tabernacle,  divided  by  a  veil  into 
two  chambei-s,  is  spoken  of  as  two 
tabernacles,  a  "first"  or  outer,  and 
a  "  second  "  or  inner. 

tJie  candlestick.  Exod.  xxv.  30  f. 
The  seven-branched  candlestick  or 
lampstand  of  the  shape  famihar  to 
us  from  its  representation  on  the 
Arch  of  Titus.  In  Solomon's 
Temple  there  were  ten  (1  Kings 
vii.  49).  In  the  Herodian  Temple 
there  was  again  only  one. 

the  table  and  the  shewbread. 
Exod.  xxvi.  35,  xl.  22,  23 ;  Lev.  xxiv. 
5f. 

Holy  place . . .  Holy  of  holies.  For 
the  distinction  see  Exod.  xxvi.  33. 


64 


HEBREWS 


[IX.  1-10 


3.  the  second  veil.  The  veil 
spoken  of  in  Exod.  xxvi.  31-33 ;  in 
contrast  with  the  outer  veil  at  the 
entrance  of  the  Holy  place,  which  is 
referred  to  in  v.  6,  and  is  that  of  v.  36 
of  the  same  chapter. 

4.  censer  (or,  altar  of  incense). 
The  Greek  word  has  both  senses. 
In  classical  Greek  it  means  censer ; 
and  this  usage  is  found  in  the  O.T. 
in  the  only  two  places  (2  Chron. 
xxvi.  19,  Ezek.  viii.  11)  where  the 
word  is  used,  the  common  word  for 
"  censer  "  being  a  different  one.  In 
writers  contemporary  with  this 
Epistle  (Philo  and  Josephus)  it  is 
the  title  for  the  altar  of  incense. 
Neither  rendering  in  this  place  is 
free  from  considerable  difficulty.  If 
we  take  it  to  mean  censer,  i.e.  the 
censer  in  which  incense  was  to  be 
carried  into  the  Holy  of  Holies  on 
the  Day  of  Atonement  (Lev.  xvi. 
12,  there  is  no  mention  there  nor 
elsewhere  of  this  having  been  of 
gold),  it  is  hard  to  understand  why, 
in  this  otherwise  full  account  of  the 
furniture  of  the  two  holy  places,  the 
altar  of  incense,  familiar  in  the  use 
of  the  later  Temple  (see  Luke  i.  8  f.) 
and  prominent  in  the  descriptions  of 
Exodus,  is  silently  omitted.  If  we 
take  it  for  the  altar  of  incense.,  we 
are  met  with  what  is  at  first  sight 
the  greater  difficulty,  that  the  writer 
seems  to  place  it  \vithin  the  Holy  of 
Holies,  whereas  the  direct  state- 
ments of  Exod.  XXX.  6,  confirmed 
by  the  use  made  of  the  altar  in 
the  daily  service,  assign  its  place 
unmistakeably  outside  the  "second 
veil."  A  mistake  in  such  a  matter  is 
incredible.  And  it  is  scarcely  more 
satisfactory  to  suppose  (Hastings' 
Diet.  s.v.  Tabernacle)  that  the  writer 
is  following  an  independent  tradi- 
tion. He  evidently  keeps  close  to 
the  text  of  Exodus.     It  seems  how- 


ever possible  (and  it  is  open  to  the 
fewest  objections)  to  explain  "hav- 
ing" not  of  local  inclusion,  but  of 
close  connexion  in  idea  and  use. 
This  is  indeed  the  only  way  in  which 
the  censer  itself  was  related  to  the 
Holy  of  Holies.  It  cannot  have 
been  kept  within  it.  There  is  a 
very  similar  expression  used  of  the 
altar  of  incense  in  1  Kings  vi.  22 
(R.V.),  "the  altar  that  belonged  to 
the  oracle,"  the  "  oracle  "  (as  is  made 
clear  in  the  following  verse)  meaning 
the  Holy  of  Holies.  The  altar  of 
incense  is  spoken  of  as  "  before  the 
mercy-seat,"  Exod.  xxx.  6,  xl.  6.  It 
was  intimately  connected  both  in  its 
daily  use  with  the  general  symbolism 
of  the  Holy  of  Holies,  and  specially 
with  the  ceremonies  of  the  Day  of 
Atonement  {ibid.  v.  10). 

the  ark  of  the  covenant.  The 
common  title  in  the  O.T.  It  was 
the  equivalent  of  the  "ark  of  the 
testimony,"  and  both  titles  referred 
to  the  fact  that  traditionally  and  in 
idea  it  contained  the  Tables  of  the 
Law. 

5.  cherubim  cf glory.  See  Exod- 
XXV.  18-22.  "Cherubim  which  ex- 
press, localize,  God's  manifested 
glory."  The  nearest  parallel  for  the 
phrase  is  "  the  throne  of  his  glory," 
Matt.  XXV.  31.  God's  Presence  was 
thought  of  as  localized  above  the 
mercy-seat,  "between  the  Cheru- 
bim," Exod.  XXV.  22  ;  Ps.  Ixxx.  1. 

the  mercy-seat  (Gr.  propitiatory, 
marg. ) :  the  plate  or  lid  of  gold  which 
lay  over  the  Ark  of  the  Covenant, 
and  which  was  sprinkled  with  the 
blood  on  the  Day  of  Atonement.  Its 
Hebrew  name  was  "  Capporeth,"  and 
this  was  rendered  by  the  LXX  in 
Exod.  XXV.  17  by  two  words  {IXaa-TT}- 
piov  fnidefxa),  the  substantive  mean- 
ing "a  cover,"  and  the  adjective 
"belonging  to  propitiation."    It  is 


IX.  1-10] 


HEBREWS 


65 


a  disputed  question  whether  the 
idea  of  propitiation  belonged  pro- 
perly to  the  Hebrew  name  as  "  some- 
thing that  covers  or  puts  out  of 
sight,"  or  was  added  by  the  Greek 
translators  as  indicating  the  use  of 
the  "cover."  In  practice,  in  the 
Greek,  the  substantive  was  generally 
dropped,  and  the  adjective  stood 
alone  for  "the  instrument  (or,  the 
place)  of  propitiation."  Our  trans- 
lation, "mercy-seat,"  comes  from 
Luther's  rendering  "  Gnadenstuhl," 
which,  again,  is  an  interpretation 
rather  than  a  literal  translation,  and 
had  in  view  such  expressions  as 
"the  throne  of  gi-ace"  in  this  Epistle 
(iv.  16). 

of  which  things  tee  cannot  now 
speak  severally.  The  words  suggest 
that  more  might  be  said,  in  the 
direction  which  he  has  indicated,  of 
the  preciousness  of  the  contents  of 
the  Holy  of  Holies  (all  that  was  costly 
— this  is  the  point  of  the  repeated 
"  of  gold  " — all  that  was  august  and 
sacred).  "  But,"  he  continues,  "  rich 
as  all  this  was  in  promise,  how  small 
was  the  access  allowed  to  it ! " 

6.  prepared.  The  word  takes 
us  back  to  v.  2.  We  pass  from  the 
arrangements  of  the  "sanctuary," 
there  named,  to  the  "  ordinances  of 
divine  service,"  i.e.  to  the  use  made 
of  the  sanctuary. 

go.  The  present  tense  in  this  and 
the  following  verses  is  not  of  what 
happens  at  the  moment  of  writing, 
but  of  what  happens  according  to 
Scripture :  the  priests  "  are  to  go." 
These  tenses  therefore  do  not  by 
themselves  prove  that  the  Temple 
worship  was  still  going  on  (see 
Introd.  III.  §  4). 

the  services ;  i.e.  the  services  or- 
dained according  to  v.  1  and  belong- 
ing to  the  Holy  Place — the  dressing 
of  the  lamps  (Exod.  xxvii.  21),  the 


offering  of  incense  (Exod.  xxx.  7), 
the  changing  of  the  shewbread  (Lev. 
xxiv.  8). 

7.  errors.  Gr.  ignorances  (marg.). 
The  literal  rendering  should  be 
kept  as  in  ch.  v.  2,  "the  ignorant 
(the  word  used  here),  and  erring" 
(another  word).  So  in  our  Litany, 
"  sins,  negligences  and  ignorances." 

8.  the  Holy  Ghost.  "  There  is  a 
divine  meaning"  (Westcott)  in  the 
ritual  as  well  as  in  the  words  of  the 
O.T. 

way  into  the  holy  place.  This  is  the 
word  translated  in  ch.  viii.  2  "  sanc- 
tuary," i.e.  the  Holy  of  Holies ;  and 
the  whole  expression  is  equivalent 
to  that  of  X.  19,  20,  "to  enter  into 
the  holy  place... the  way  which  he 
dedicated  for  us,  &c." 

Jirsi  tabernacle.  The  words  must 
have  the  same  sense  as  in  vi\  2  and 
6,  viz.  the  first,  or  outer,  chamber  of 
the  Tabernacle. 

is  yet  standing.  The  Greek  is 
more  emphatic,  "  has  yet  standing," 
i.e.  standing  room,  place  and  purpose. 

9.  which  \is'\  a  parable.  The 
question  is  raised  whether  the  ante- 
cedent to  "  which  "  is  to  be  found  in 
"  the  first  tabernacle,"  or  in  "  stand- 
ing," or  in  the  whole  clause,  "  which 
thing,"  i.e.  the  fact  that  the  first 
tabernacle  was  yet  standing.  The 
last  is  the  simplest,  and  the  Greek, 
though  not  requiring,  amply  admits 
it.  The  existence  of  the  outer 
tabernacle,  so  fenced  and  differenced 
from  the  inner  one  in  which  God's 
Presence  was  localized,  was  a 
parable. 

[/«... wotr.]  As  will  be  seen  from 
the  italics  in  the  text,  these  words  do 
not  stand  in  the  Greek.  In  A.V.  the 
words  supplied  are  "was"  and  "then." 
This  made  no  difference  in  the  sense. 
The  Revisers  desired  only  to  mark 
more  clearly  the  uniformity  of  tense 


66 


HEBREWS 


[IX.  11-14 


throughout  (see  on  v.  6,  "  go  ").  "The 
time  present"  in  either  case  is  the 
time  of  the  Jewish  Dispensation 
("these  days"  of  eh.  i.  2)  as  con- 
trasted with  the  "time  of  reforma- 
tion" of  the  following  verse  (the 
"age  to  come"  of  ch.  vi.  5,  the 
"  days  that  come  "  of  viii.  8),  that  is, 
with  the  Messianic  Dispensation. 

according  to  which.  The  ante- 
cedent is  "  parable."  The  parable  of 
the  divided  Tabernacle,  with  its  veil 
still  hanging,  is  worked  out  in  an 
analogous  system  of  imperfect,  typi- 
cal, "  gifts  and  sacrifices." 

10.  with  meats,  &c.  "With" 
here  means  "resting  upon,"  "con- 
ditioned by."  For  the  "  meats  and 
drinks"  see  Col.  ii.  16  ;  Rom.  xiv.  17. 
The  rules  of  the  Law  had  been  ex- 
tended in  Jewish  tradition :  see 
Lightfoot  on  Col.  I.e.  See  also 
Introd.  III.  §  5. 

divers  washings.    See  Mark  vii.  4. 

carnal  ordinances.  We  are  taken 
back  by  the  word  "ordinances"  to 


V.  1.  As  vv.  6-8  had  shewn  how  the 
"tabernacle"  of  the  Old  Covenant 
by  its  construction  proclaimed  its 
own  failure  as  a  real  meeting-place 
of  God  and  man,  so  vv.  9,  10  pro- 
claim the  failure  of  the  "ordinances 
of  divine  service."  There  is  in  the 
Greek  a  further  verbal  correspond- 
ence which  is  not  reproduced  in  our 
translation  between  the  "divine 
service  "  {to^  XarpeLas)  of  V.  6  and  the 
"worshipper"  {jhv  XarpfvovTa)  of  v.  9. 
The  failure  is  stamped  in  the  word 
"  carnal."  They  were  material.  To 
"  make  the  worshipper  perfect,"  i.e. 
to  do  for  him  all  that  his  conscience 
required  to  be  done  (see  on  ch.  vii. 
11,  "perfection"),  they  must  be 
spiritual. 

imposed.  There  is  in  the  word 
some  feeling  of  the  "burden"  of 
such  rule :  cp.  Matt,  xxiii.  4 ;  Acts 
XV.  10,  28. 

a  time  of  r^ormation,  i.e.  of  put- 
ting things  on  a  better  footing. 


IX.  11-14    Superiority  of  the  Christian  Atonement. 

11  But  Christ,  having  come  a  high  priest  of  Hhe  good 
things  to  come,  through  the  greater  and  more  perfect 
tabernacle,  not  made  with  hands,  that  is  to  say,  not  of  this 

12  creation,  nor  yet  through  the  blood  of  goats  and  calves, 
but  through  his  own  blood,  entered  in  once  for  all  into  the 

13  holy  place,  having  obtained  eternal  redemption.  For  if 
the  blood  of  goats  and  bulls,  and  the  ashes  of  an  heifer 
sprinkling  them  that  have  been  defiled,  sanctify  unto  the 

14  cleanness  of  the  flesh  ;  how  much  more  shall  the  blood  of 
Christ,  who  through  the  eternal  Spirit  ofiered  himself 
without  blemish  unto  God,  cleanse  ^your  conscience  from 
dead  works  to  serve  the  living  God  ? 


1  Some  ancient  authorities  read  the  good  things  that  are  come. 

2  Many  ancient  authorities  read  our. 


IX.  11-14] 


HEBREWS 


67 


General  Note  on  w.  11-14. 

As  w.  1-10  have  set  forth  the  provision  for  priestly  access  and  for  atone- 
ment made  under  the  Old  Covenant,  and  its  weakness,  so  vv.  11-14  set  forth, 
in  contrast  with  it,  the  provision  made  by  the  "  more  excellent  ministry " 
of  the  New.  Its  superiority  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  is  immaterial.  The 
Tabernacle  which  offers  access,  the  Sacrifice  which  makes  atonement,  are 
spiritual ;  and  therefore  the  access  and  the  atonement  are  eternal. 


1 1.  having  come,  i.e.  come  on  the 
scene,  come  as  a  new  Presence  and 
Power.  So  the  verb  is  used  of  the 
appearance  of  John  the  Baptist,  "  In 
those  days  came  John  the  Baptist," 
Matt.  iii.  1.  It  suggests  a  turning- 
point  in  a  history. 

tJte  good  things  to  come.  The 
phrase  is  repeated  in  ch.  x.  1.  The 
good  things  of  the  new  era  which 
He  came  to  open  are  contrasted 
with  the  "  time  present "  of  v.  9 
which  had  to  be  content  with 
"  parables,"  figures.  A  "  high  priest 
of  the  good  things"  is  a  High 
Priest  whose  ministrations  win  for 
the  people  these  blessings.  As  the 
margin  notices,  there  is  an  early 
variant  for  "  things  to  come,"  "things 
that  are  come"  {yevofitvav).  It 
stands  in  the  Vatican  MS,  and  in 
several  early  versions,  and  was  read 
by  Chrysostom.  If  it  were  adopted, 
it  would  mean  "good  things  which 
are  already  realized... not  promised 
only  and  future,"  Westcott. 

through.  Hee  v.  12,  "through  the 
blood."  It  is  difficult  to  give  two 
diff'erent  senses  to  the  preposition 
in  the  two  consecutive  clauses,  as 
though  the  first  were  local,  "  passing 
through,"  and  the  second  causal, 
"  in  virtue  of,"  or  "  with  the  accom- 
paniment of"  ;  and  the  second  sense 
is  the  only  one  which  suits  both 
clauses.  It  is  however  questionable 
whether  "through  the... tabernacle" 
should  be  taken  directly  with  "en- 
tered in"  rather  than  with  the  words 
"high  priest  of  the  good  things  to 


come  " ;  His  service  and  the  blessing 
which  it  wins  have  as  their  sphere 
the  greater  Tabernacle.  For  the  use 
of  the  preposition  itself,  "  through  " 
{8id),  in  both  cases  Westcott  com- 
pares 1  John  V.  6,  "this  is  he  that 
came  by  {8ia.)  water  and  blood."  He 
might  have  added  that  the  preposi- 
tion is  varied  there  (and  so  inter- 
preted) in  the'following  clause  (see 
margin  of  R.V.)  by  "  in,"  just  as  here 
"through  the  blood"  becomes  in 
V.  25  "with  (Gr.  "in,"  eV)  the 
blood." 

the  greater  and  more  perfect 
tabernacle.  The  same  as  the  "  true 
tabernacle"  of  ch.  viii.  2,  the  "pat- 
tern "  of  viii.  5.  It  is  asked  what  this 
greater  Tabernacle  is.  An  answer 
must  involve  the  larger  question  of 
the  use  of  typical  language  in  this 
Epistle.  On  the  one  hand  it  is  clear 
that  the  correspondence  between 
material  type  and  spiritual  reality 
must  be  general,  not  particular ;  a  cor- 
respondence of  the  ideas  embodied, 
not  of  the  form  of  their  embodi- 
ment. All  types  are  the  shadowing 
forth  of  something  that  cannot  be 
grasped.  The  true  "Tabernacle" 
must  be,  as  the  true  place  of  worship 
(John  iv.  21),  "neither in  this  moun- 
tain nor  in  Jerusalem."  The  teach- 
ing of  the  Epistle  is  that  all  types  of 
approach  to  God's  Presence,  and  of 
atonement,  are  fulfilled  once  and 
for  all  in  the  Person  of  the  Incarnate 
Son.  On  the  other  hand  the  fulfil- 
ment is  expressed  itself  in  figurative 
language  borrowed  from  the  typical 
5—2 


68 


HEBREWS 


[IX.  11-14 


system:  and  these  figures  change. 
The  language  which  describes 
Christ's  atoning  action  is  coloured 
with  the  phraseology  of  the  Jewish 
Day  of  Atonement.  Christ  is  the 
High  Priest.  He  offers  His  own 
Blood.  He  passes  "into"  or 
"through  the  Tabernacle,"  "through 
the  veil"  He  passes  "through  the 
heavens"  (ch.  iv.  14).  But  the 
"heavens,"  if  taken  locally,  are,  as 
much  as  the  Temple,  "of  this  crea- 
tion." And  again  the  figures  are  not 
constant.  If  the  true  Tabernacle 
is  in  any  literal  sense  the  "  pattern  " 
of  the  earthly  one,  it  should  have 
something  to  correspond  to  the  divi- 
sion, to  the  'Veil."  The  Holy  of  Holies 
in  V.  24  of  this  chapter  is  the  figure 
of  Heaven  itself.  In  iv.  14,  as  we 
saw,  the  veil  seems  to  be  the 
"heavens."  In  ch.  x.  20  it  is  "his 
flesh."  In  X.  15-22  the  Christian 
himself  receives  the  consecration  and 
has  the  right  of  access  which  belongs 
to  the  High  Priest  "  by  the  Blood  of 
Jesus."  If  then  we  are  asked  "what 
is  the  greater  and  more  perfect 
Tabernacle  "  we  can  only  answer  that 
it  is  a  figure,  and  a  figure  which  ad- 
mits of  interpretation  only  as  part  of 
a  larger  figure.  As  a  whole  the 
types  of  sanctuary,  priest,  and  ofl"er- 
ing  shadowed  forth  the  power  of 
access  to  God's  Presence  opened  to 
sin-stained  man  by  God  Himself  in 
the  Person  of  His  Incarnate  Son. 
The  earthly  Tabernacle  and  its  ritual 
typified  these  things  in  the  imper- 
fection of  an  inchoate  Revelation. 
The  heavenly  Tabernacle  figures 
them  as  perfectly  realized.  The 
heavenly  Tabernacle  is  not  the  anti- 
type, but  a  figure,  borrowing  its 
imagery  from  the  type :  and  neither 
type  nor  figure  will  bear  breaking 
up  into  portions  as  though  each  por- 
tion must  have  a  distinct  fact  or 
existence  to  answer  to  it. 


not  made  with  hands.  See  v.  24. 
It  is  diflBcult  to  say  whether  the 
imagery  has  its  roots  in  sayings 
traditionally  attributed  to  our  Lord 
Himself,  as  in  John  iv.  21  and  id.  ii. 
19.  His  special  image  of  the  temple 
built  without  hands  we  know  to  have 
caught  the  attention  both  of  friends 
{ibid.  V.  22)  and  of  enemies  (Mark  xiv, 
58). 

not  of  this  creation.  Not  belong- 
ing to  this  visible  frame  of  things — 
not  material.  "This,"  as  in  "this 
life,"  1  Cor.  xv.  19;  "creation"  as  in 
Col.  i.  15.  The  words  have  also  been 
translated  (as  A.V.)  "not  of  this 
building,"  and  taken  as  strictly 
parallel  to  "  which  the  Lord  pitched 
and  not  man"  (ch.  viii.  2). 

12.  goats  and  calves.  The  usual 
combination  to  designate  sacrifices 
generally  is  that  of  ch.  x.  4,  "bulls 
and  goats."  The  pi'eference  here  and 
in  V.  13  for  "goats  and  calves  (bul- 
locks)" means  probably  that  the 
gokts  of  the  Day  of  Atonement  are 
specially  in  the  writer's  mind. 

13.  Fori/....  Vb.  13,  14  dwell 
on  and  emphasize  the  phrase 
"eternal  redemption,"  a  redemp- 
tion without  limit  of  time,  a  re- 
demption of  spirit  and  life.  "If — 
you  allow  so  much — the  sacrifices  of 
the  old  Law,  the  blood  of  the  goats 
and  calves,  as  on  the  Day  of  Atone- 
ment, or  the  sprinkling  of  the  ashes 
of  a  burnt  heifer  in  the  case  of  cere- 
monial defilement,  were  accepted  as 
giving  ceremonial  cleansing  and  as 
restoring  to  visible  communion,  do 
you  not  see  the  infinitely  greater 
power  of  such  a  sacrifice  as  that  of 
Christ  to  cleanse  the  moral  defile- 
ment and  restore  the  pardoned  to 
the  possibility  of  acceptable  service 
to  God?" 

and  the  ashes  of  an  heifer.  The 
reference  is  to  the  ritual  described 
in  Numb.  xix.  for  the  purification  of 


IX.  11-14] 


HEBREWS 


69 


those  who,  by  touching  a  dead  body, 
or  otherwise,  had  contracted  cere- 
monial iincleanness.  The  sentence 
began  as  if  the  comparison  were  to 
be,  as  before,  between  the  Eternal 
Sacrifice  and  the  typical  sacrifices  of 
the  Day  of  Atonement,  but  with  one 
of  those  turns  which  belong  to  a 
piece  of  oratory  rather  than  a 
treatise,  the  writer  passes  to  a 
second  and  more  limited  class  of 
pm-ificatory  sacrifices.  This  is  due 
in  part  to  his  purpose  of  shewing 
that  it  is  not  one  rite,  but  the  whole 
sacrificial  system  that  is  in  question, 
in  part  to  the  contrast,  which  is  al- 
ready coming  into  his  mind,  between 
the  imaginary  and  ceremonial  defile- 
ment for  touching  a  dead  body,  and 
the  real  and  moral  defilement  of 
"  dead  works." 

sanctify  unto  (rather,  "  in  respect 
of").  To  sanctify,  or  as  we  should 
rather  say,  to  "consecrate,"  is  to  set 
apart  for  God's  service.  The  verb  is 
applied  to  a  priestly  order,  or  to  the 
whole  people,  or  to  places  and  things 
dedicated  to  sacred  uses.  Here  it 
means  to  re-consecrate— to  restore, 
as  by  an  absolution,  the  consecrated 
status  of  a  member  of  the  holy 
nation. 

cleanness  of  the  flesh ;'  an  external, 
ceremonial  purity.  "Flesh"  is  op- 
posed to  "  spirit."  It  is  a  reference 
back  to  the  "carnal  ordinances," 
ordinances  of  the  flesh,  of  v.  10.  Cp. 
Mark  vii.  18-23. 

14.  through  the  eternal  Spirit. 
The  words  seem  to  take  us  into  un- 
fathomable depths  of  the  Divine 
Nature;  but  so  far  as  we  can  define 
their  meaning,  it  is  defined  by  the 
context  It  is  to  be  noticed  that  in 
tlie  Greek  phrase  there  is  no  definite 
article.  It  is  better  therefore  to 
translate  "an  eternal  Spirit."  This 
does  not  mean  that  the  writer  does 


not  speak  of  the  Spirit  of  God  :  but 
(just  as  with  "  a  Son,"  in  ch.  i.  2)  the 
omission   of  the  article  makes  the 
phrase  descriptive  rather    than    a 
mere  designation.     This  is  essential 
to  the  purpose :  for  (1)  there  in  an 
intended  contrast  running  through 
the  sentence  between  the 'material 
sacrifices  of  dumb  animals  oS"ered 
imder  the  Law  and  the  "spiritual,  vo- 
luntary, moral "  Sacrifice  of  Calvary. 
Swete  {The  Holy  Spirit  in  the  New 
Testament,  p.  252)  follows  out  still 
further  in  beautiful    language  the 
meaning  of  the  words  from  this  point 
of  view  :  "  The  Spirit  which  impelled 
our  Lord  to  oflfer  the  Great  Sacrifice 
was  not  the  spirit  of  this  world, 
narrow,   time-bound,  but  a  larger, 
longer  outlook  upon  the  whole  of  life, 
the    Spirit    that   views    all    things 
sub  specie  aeternitatis,  that  takes 
its  standpoint  in  the  invisible  and 
eternal,  not  in  this  short  existence": 
(2)  there  is  reference  back  to  the 
"eternal  redemption"  oi  v.  12:  the 
redemption    is    "eternal,"   because 
the  Spirit  through  Wliom    it  was 
eflFected  is  the  Spirit  of  the  Eternal. 
The    redemption    belongs    to    the 
timeless  sphere.     The  exact  phrase 
"  through  the  Spirit "  does  not  occur 
in  this  connexion  elsewhere :  but  the 
actions  of  the  Incarnate  Son  are  con- 
stantly spoken  of  as  proceeding  from 
His  union  with  the  Father  through 
the  Spirit.  He  "speaketh  the  words 
of  God.  ..for  He  giveth  not  the  Spirit 
by  measure"  (John  iii.  34) ;  He  was 
"  anointed  with  the  Holy  Ghost  and 
went  about  doing  good,  for  God  was 
with  Him"  (Acts  x.  38).     St  Paul 
associates    the    indwelling    of    the 
Spirit  with  the  fact  of  Resurrec- 
tion ;  in  the  first  place  our  Resur- 
rection, but  constructively  also  the 
Resurrection  of  Christ  (Rom.  viii.  11). 
without    blemish:    the    require- 


70 


HEBREWS 


[IX.  15 


ment  in  the  case  of  all  victims 
offered  under  the  Law,  and  especi- 
ally named  in  the  case  under  view, 
Numb.  xix.  2.  St  Peter  makes  the 
same  application,  1  Pet.  i.  19. 

dead  works.  See  on  ch.  vi.  1, 
"repentance  from  dead  works."  The 
phrase  would  seem  to  be  habitual, 
but  here  it  is  brought  into  con- 
nexion with  the  context,  (1)  as  con- 
trasting with  the  service  of  the 
"living  God,"  (2)  as  answering  anti- 
typically  to  the  effect  of  touching  a 
dead  body. 

to  serve  (Xarpcvfiv) :  a  ritual  word, 
being  the  same  which  is  used  in  v.  9, 
where  the  participle  is  translated 
"the  worshipper."  The  t)'pical  lan- 
guage is  continued  with  a  moral 
meaning.  The  effect  of  the  ceremonial 
cleansing  was  to  restore  to  the  man 
his  place  in  the  congregation.  So  the 
effect  of  the  cleansed  conscience  is 
to  enable  him  to  offer  what  St  Paul 


calls  (Rom.  xii.  1)  "reasonable  ser- 
vice": cp.  our  Collect  for  21st  S. 
after  Trinity,  "that  we  may  be 
cleansed  from  all  our  sins  and  serve 
thee  with  a  quiet  mind." 

the  living  God:  a  title  frequent  in 
the  O.T.  (see  inter  al.  Deut.  v.  26; 
Josh.  iii.  10)  and  in  tacit  comparison 
with  the  lifeless  idols.  It  is  adopted 
in  the  N.T.  and  sometimes  with  the 
same  contrast,  as  in  Acts  xiv.  15, 
"to  turn  from  these  vain  things 
unto  the  living  God  "  (so  in  1  Thess. 
i.  9  and  cp.  in  this  Epistle  iii.  12) ; 
sometimes  with  other  thoughts 
which  the  attribute  of  life  sug- 
gests, as  eternity,  or  power,  the 
power  to  reward  and  to  punish,  the 
impossibility  of  eluding  or  escap- 
ing Him  (as  ch.  x.  31).  Here  the 
contrast  is  between  "dead  works" 
and  the  service  of  the  Source  of  life, 
order,  progress. 


IX.  15.  Need  of  a  Death  in  the  New  Covenant. 

15  And  for  this  cause  he  is  the  mediator  of  a  new  ^covenant, 
that  a  death  having  taken  place  for  the  redemption  of  the 
transgressions  that  were  under  the  first  ^covenant,  they 
that  have  been  called  may  receive  the  promise  of  the 
eternal  inheritance. 

^  The  Greek  word  here  used  signifies  both  covenant  and  testament. 

General  Note  on  v.  15. 

This  sentence  at  once  completes  the  preceding  subject,  by  shewing  the 
link  between  the  "more  excellent  ministry"  and  the  "New  Covenant";  and 
also,  after  the  writer's  manner,  opens  the  further  point  of  the  necessity  to 
this  New  Covenant  of  "  a  death."  We  may  paraphrase  "  And  because  of 
this  (i.e.  because  of  the  power  of  His  sacrifice  to  effect  an  "eternal  re- 
demption ")  He  has  been  able  to  bring  about  that  New  Covenant  of  which 
the  prophet  Jeremiah  spoke,  a  New  Covenant  completing  and  rendering 
effective  the  Old."  For  the  Old  had  failed.  Its  sacrifices  had  not  taken 
away  sin  and  therefore  the  promised  "  inheritance  "  had  not  been  realized. 

There  seems  to  be  a  suggestion,  which  would  mean  much  to  a  Jewish 
Christian,  that  the  sacrifice  of  Christ  was  retrospective  in  effect — the  one 
thing  waited  for  to  give  validity  to  all  the  sacrifices  that  had  been  offered 


IX.  16,  17]  HEBREWS  71 

through  the  centuries,  and  to  put  the  elect  people  in  possession  of  the 
"  eternal  inheritance  "  promised  to  their  forefathers,  but  never  given  save  in 
type  and  shadow. 

The  parallel  is  not  to  be  looked  for  in  1  Pet.  iii.  19,  which  refers  to 
another  class  of  persons  (those  spoken  of  here  are  the  faithful  sons  of  the 
Old  Covenant,  who,  as  we  read  in  ch.  xi.  13  and  39,  "received  not  the 
promise"),  but  rather  in  1  Pet.  i.  19,  20,  and  possibly  Rev.  xiii.  8  (but  see 
Swete's  note  there).  The  objects  of  redemption  are  united  in  one  category, 
for  the  One  and  Only  Sacrifice  is  not  of  the  sphere  of  time.  None  were  bom 
too  soon  to  feel  its  effects,  and  none  will  be  born  too  late.  See  note  on 
ix.  26. 

The  next  paragraph  mil  take  up  the  words  "a  death  having  taken  place"; 
"a  death — I  say — for  a  covenant  requires  a  death."  Notice  also  that  this 
dwelling  on  the  necessity  foi*  a  death  is  part  of  the  vFritei*'s  purpose  to  meet 
the  Jewish  shrinking  from  the  idea  of  death  as  associated  with  the  Messiah. 
See  general  note  on  ii.  5-18. 

15.     they  that  have  been  called.      sharers,    as  all   Israelites  were,  in 
Cp.  the  expression  in  ch.  iii.  1,  "par-      the  call  of  Abraham, 
takers    of    a    heavenly    calling" — 

IX.  16,  17.    Analogy  from  daily  life. 

16  For  where  a  Hestament  is,  there  must  of  necessity  ^be 

17  the  death  of  him  that  made  it.  For  a  testament  is  of  force 
^  where  there  hath  been  a  death  :  *for  doth  it  ever  avail 
while  he  that  made  it  liveth? 

^  The  Greek  word  here  used  signifies  both  covenant  and  testament. 
^  Gr.  he  brought.  ^  Gr.  over  the  dead. 

*  Or,  for  it  doth  never... liveth. 

General  Note  on  vv.  16,  17. 

The  writer  justifies  the  association  of  "a  death"  with  the  "New 
Covenant"  by  three  arguments  or,  rather,  illustrations :  (\)  vv.  16,  17,  from 
law  and  common  experience ;  (2)  vc.  18-20,  from  the  precedent  of  the  Old 
Covenant ;  (3)  vv.  21-23,  from  the  general  analogy  of  the  Levitical  ritual. 

The  first  illustration  {vv.  16,  17),  if  we  may  keep  the  translation  which 
stands  in  the  text  ("where  a  testament  is"),  is  perfectly  clear  and  straight- 
forward. The  writer  is  seeking  (as  he  seeks  throughout  the  Epistle)  to  meet 
the  feelings  of  readers  who  shrink  from  associating  the  Messiah,  Who  comes 
to  renew  and  perfect  the  Covenant  between  God  and  His  people,  with  the 
death  of  the  Cross.  He  says,  in  effect.  Think  of  the  Covenant  as,  what 
it  is  indeed,  a  Testament  rather  than  a  Covenant  proper — as  an  arrange- 
ment made  in  advance  for  securing  to  God's  children  a  desired  in- 
heritance. Such  a  "testament"  does  not  take  effect  unless  the  testator 
himself  die.  The  writer  speaks  (as  St  Paul  says  of  himself  in  a  very  similar 
connexion,  in  Gal.  iii.  15)  "  after  the  manner  of  men."  The  figure  of  a  testa- 
ment, just  as  the  figures,  whether  of  a  covenant  or  of  a  sacrifice,  can  only 


72  HEBREWS  [ix.  16,  17 

hold  to  a  certain  point,  can  only  touch  one  side  of  what  it  illustrates  :  but 
so  far  as  it  goes  it  is  unambiguous.  It  is  the  same  figure  that  St  Luke  puts 
into  our  Lord's  own  mouth  on  the  night  of  the  Passion,  "  I  appoint  unto  you 
a  kingdom  "  (Luke  xxii.  29),  where  the  verb  is  the  cognate  verb  to  the  sub- 
stantive used  here  {BiaTidefxai)  and  speaks  of  testamentary  appointment.  : 

On  the  whole  this  has  been  the  usual  way  of  explaining  the  passage,  but 
it  has  been  criticized  by  eminent  commentators.  It  is  therefore  well  to  see 
some  of  the  reasons  for  defending  it. 

1.  It  has  been  said  that  the  universal  use  of  the  word  diadtjKr]  in  the 
LXX  is  for  "covenant"  and  that  this  is  followed  in  the  N.T.,  the  only 
doubtful  case  besides  the  present  one  being  Gal.  iii.  15,  where  R.V.  reads 
"covenant,"  but  puts  "or,  testament"  in  the  margin;  Lightfoot  defends 
"  covenant,"  but  see  the  valuable  note  in  Ramsay's  Galatians,  §  xxxiv.  The 
etymological  meaning  of  diad^Krf  is  a  "  disposition,"  or  arrangement ;  and  its 
use  in  secular  Greek,  both  of  the  classical  era  and  under  the  Empire, 
covered  the  two  senses  of  "  covenant,"  or  arrangement  by  agreement,  and 
"  testament,"  or  airangement  by  will.  The  latter  of  the  two  is  the  commoner 
in  extant  literature  :  but  there  is  the  reason  that  there  was  an  alternative 
word  {(ruv6vKr))  for  a  "  covenant."  It  is  true  that  in  Biblical  Greek  the  word 
is  very  frequently  used,  and  in  the  O.T.  always  for  a  "covenant"  :  but  it  must 
be  added  that  no  other  word  is  found  meaning  a  "  will,"  and  that  there  is  no 
proof  therefore  that,  if  the  sacred  writers  had  wished  to  speak  of  a  will,  they 
would  not  have  used  the  word  as  the  classical  writers  used  it.  The  use  of 
the  verb,  already  referred  to,  in  Luke  xxii.  29,  looks  as  if  they  would  have 
done  so.  So  far  then  as  the  general  use  of  the  word  is  concerned,  there  seems 
to  be  no  reason  against  giving  it  the  sense  of  "testament,"  if  that  sense  suits 
the  context. 

2.  Is  it  then  forbidden  by  the  fact  that  the  word  is  undoubtedly  used 
for  "  covenant "  in  other  parts  of  this  Epistle  and  in  the  general  argument 
of  this  chapter  ?  In  the  first  place  it  should  be  said  that  the  variation  in 
meaning  is  not  as  great  as  at  first  sight  appears.  It  is  made  more  easy 
(a)  by  the  consciousness,  wliich  would  be  present  to  any  Greek  writer,  of  the 
neutral  meaning  in  the  first  instance  of  bia6r)Krj  as  an  "  appointment "  or  ar- 
rangement :  {h)  by  the  consciousness,  evident  throughout  the  Epistle,  that 
"covenant,"  in  the  strict  sense  of  an  arrangement  in  which  there  is  a 
reciprocity  of  benefits  and  engagements,  was  not  an  accurate  word  to  de- 
scribe on  both  sides  God's  promises  and  commands  (see  note  on  ch.  viii.  8) : 
(c)  by  the  presence  (in  v.  15),  immediately  before  this  narrowing  of  the  sense  of 
btaQrjKr]  seems  to  occur,  of  words  which  give  to  the  "arrangement"  the 
colour  of  a  "  testament,"  viz.  "  promise  "  and  "  inheritance." 

3.  But  the  strongest  reason  for  retaining  the  usual  interpretation  is  the 
diflBculty  of  making  really  satisfactory  sense  out  of  the  rendering  "covenant." 
With  that  rendering,  the  statements  of  ^5.  16  have  to  do  not  with  the  actual 
death  of  the  covenanting  person  but  with  an  imagined  and  represented 
death.  It  could  not  be  said  literally  that  a  covenant  involved  for  its 
vaUdity  the  death  of  the  parties  to  it.  It  is  true  (and  this  is  what,  in  this 
view  of  the  meaning,  is  referred  to)  that  in  the  ancient  world  generally  a 
covenant  was  made  (see  Psalm  1.  5)  "  with  sacrifice."    The  custom  was  so  well 


IX.  18-20]  HEBREWS  73 

understood  that  it  passed  into  the  language  of  Greeks,  Latins,  and  Hebrews 
(see  Driver  on  Gen.  xv.)  alike,  and  a  verb  signifying  to  "  cut "  or  to  "  strike  " 
("  icere  foedus  "  in  Latin)  was  used  in  speaking  of  making  a  covenant.  The 
current  explanation  of  the  custom  was  that  the  covenanting  parties  thus  re- 
presented the  fate  which  they  invoked  on  themselves  if  they  should  violate 
the  covenant.  It  has  been  indeed  suggested  (as  by  Mr  Kendall)  that  this  is 
what  is  meant  in  these  verses.  He  renders  "where  a  covenant  is  made, 
death  of  him  that  makes  it  must  be  the  forfeit  offered.  For  a  covenant  is 
ratified  upon  dead  victims  :  for  is  it  strong  at  a  time  when  he  that  makes  it 
lives  after  breaking  it  ? "  But  this  is  to  put  great  force  upon  the  words. 
In  the  intei-pretation  to  which  Westcott  lends  his  gi-eat  authority  another 
explanation  of  the  custom  is  given,  viz.  that  the  dead  victims  represented 
the  death  of  the  contracting  parties,  in  the  sense  that  they  put  themselves, 
as  though  they  were  dead,  beyond  the  power  of  revoking  their  engagement. 
Even  in  this  view  it  is  evident  that  a  good  deal  has  to  be  read  into  what  seem 
plain  words.  And  it  will  be  seen  that  the  illustration  which  the  writer  is 
giving  turns,  according  to  this  view,  not  on  facts  or  habits  within  the 
cognizance  of  his  readers,  but  on  an  interpretation,  not  the  current  or  most 
obvious  interpretation,  nor  one  explicitly  stated,  of  an  immemorial  custom. 
If  this  were  his  intention,  would  he  not  have  made  it  more  clear  to  his 
readers?  And  is  not  the  point  of  view  more  analytical  and  modem  than 
that  of  a  writer  in  the  N.T.  ? 

IX.  18-20.    Analogy  from  the  Old  Covenajstt. 

18  Wherefore  even  the  first  covenant  hath  not  been  dedicated 

19  without  blood.  For  when  every  commandment  had  been 
spoken  by  Moses  unto  all  the  people  according  to  the  law, 
he  took  the  blood  of  the  calves  and  goats,  with  water  and 
scarlet  wool  and  hyssop,  and  sprinkled  both  the  book  itself, 

20  and  all  the  people,  saying,  This  is  the  blood  of  the  ^covenant 
which  God  commanded  to  you-ward. 

^  The  Greek  word  here  used  signifies  both  covenant  aud  testament. 

General  Note  on  vv.  18-20. 

These  verses  give  the  second  argument  or  illustration.  The  Mosaic 
Covenant  was  dedicated  with  the  blood  of  sacrifice.  The  general  reference 
is  to  the  description  of  the  sacrifices  at  the  ratification  of  the  Covenant  in 
Exod.  xxiv. ;  but  the  detail  goes  in  several  points  beyond  what  is  contained 
in  that  description.  The  "calves  and  goats"  (see  on  v.  12)  is  possibly  a 
general  phrase  for  animal  sacrifice :  on  this  occasion  Exodus  names  only 
bullocks.  The  method  of  sprinkling — the  mixture  of  water,  and  the  use  of 
the  bunch  of  hyssop  tied  round  a  stick  with  scarlet  wool — though  not  men 
tioned  in  that  place  is  described  on  another  occasion,  when  blood  was 
to  be  sprinkled,  in  Lev.  xiv.  5  f.  The  sprinkling  of  the  "  book,"  though  not 
named  in  Exodus,  is  a  natural  addition. 


74 


HEBREWS 


[IX.  21-23 


20.  This  is  the  blood.  The  words 
attributed  to  Moses  in  Exodus  are 
"Behold  the  blood."  It  has  been 
suggested  that  the  change  is  due  to 
familiarity  of  the  wiiter  with  the 
traditional  form  ("This  is" — My 
Blood  of  the  Covenant — or,  the 
Blood    of   the   New   Covenant)    of 


the  words  used  in  the  institution 
of  the  Lord's  Supper.  In  any  case 
we  can  hardly  doubt  that  both  to 
wi-iter  and  to  readers  there  would  be 
present  the  thought  of  the  way  in 
which  He  had  linked  the  commemo- 
ration of  His  death  to  the  sacrifices 
which  inaugurated  the  Old  Covenant 


IX.  21-23.    Analogy  from  the  whole  Mosaic  ritual. 

21  Moreover  the  tabernacle  and  all  the  vessels  of  the  ministry 

22  he  sprinkled  in  like  manner  with  the  blood.  And  according 
to  the  law,  I  may  almost  say,  all  things  are  cleansed  with 
blood,  and  apart  from  shedding  of  blood  there  is  no  remis- 

23  sion.  It  was  necessary  therefore  that  the  copies  of  the 
things  in  the  heavens  should  be  cleansed  with  these  ;  but 
the  heavenly  things  themselves  with  better  sacrifices  than 
these. 


2L  with  the  blood.  This  is  be- 
yond the  record  in  Exod.  xl.  9f, 
which  only  mentions  the  sprinkling 
of  the  "tabernacle  and  all  that  is 
therein  "  with  oil.  But  Josephus,  in 
describing  the  same  ceremony,  adds 
the  blood. 

22.  no  remission,  lit.  no  release 
(as  from  debt,  slavery,  &c.).  It  is 
usually  accompanied  by  a  genitive 
of  that  from  which  the  release  is 
effected.  Here  it  covers  the  guilt 
of  sin  and  all  disabling  conditions  of 
ceremonial  uncleanness,  &c. 

23.  It  may  be  asked  in  what 
sense  the  "heavenly  things"  can  need 
cleansing.  It  is  a  question  perhaps 
of  which  we  feel  the  pressure  more 
than  the  first  readers  of  the  Epistle 
would  have  felt  it.  We  do  not  take 
figures  for  granted  as  they  would. 
The    expression    starts    from    the 


earthly  counterparts.  The  cleans- 
ing was  in  idea,  for  the  conscience 
of  the  worshipper.  Without  the 
blood  of  piu-ification  his  presence, 
his  offerings,  would  have  been  an 
offence,  a  stain.  When  it  is  trans- 
ferred to  the  heavenly  realities  the 
truth  of  feeling  remains.  It  is  still 
a  truth  for  the  human  spirit.  Heaven 
without  the  sense  of  atonement 
would  not  be  heaven — would  be  no 
place  of  untroubled  memory.  It 
could  not  welcome  the  sin-stained. 
The  phrase  suggests  no  new  require- 
ment, no  more  effectual  ceremony. 
It  is  itself  only  a  metaphor  from  the 
old  typical  language,  and  its  meaning 
is  the  same  truth  which  is  behind  all 
such  language.  See  on  the  whole 
matter  note  on  the  "greater  and 
more  perfect  tabernacle,"  ix.  11. 


Introductory  Note  to  vv.  24-28. 

In  the  five  following  verses  (24-28)  two  reasons  are  recalled  why  the 
offering  of  Christ  is  (as  was  said  in  v.  23)  such  a  "  better,"  i.e.  more  effectual, 
sacrifice  than  the  Levitical  offerings,  viz. : 


IX.  24-28]  HEBREWS  76 

(1)  that  it  was  presented  not  in  a  sanctuary  made  with  hands  but' in  the 
true  Presence  of  God  ; 

(2)  that  it  was  not  and  could  not  be  repeated,  like  those  of  the  Aaronic 
priesthood.     It  was  a  single  and  perfect  sacrifice. 


IX.  24-28.    Sacrifice  in  the  spiritual  and  timeless 

SPHERE. 

24  For  Christ  entered  not  into  a  holy  place  made  with  hands, 
like  in  pattern  to  the  true  ;  but  into  heaven  itself,  now  to 

25  appear  in  the  presence  of  God  for  us  :  nor  yet  that  he 
should  oifer  himself  often  ;  as  the  high  priest  entereth  into 

26  the  holy  place  year  by  year  with  blood  not  his  own  ;  else 
must  he  often  have  suffered  since  the  foundation  of  the 
world  :  but  now  once  at  the  ^end  of  the  ages  hath  he  been 
manifested  to  put  away  sin  ^by  the  sacrifice  of  himself. 

27  And  inasmuch  as  it  is  ^appointed  unto  men  once  to  die  and 

28  after  this  cometh  judgement ;  so  Christ  also,  having  been 
once  offered  to  bear  the  sins  of  many,  shall  appear  a 
second  time,  apart  from  sin,  to  them  that  wait  for  him, 
unto  salvation. 

^  Or,  coyisummation  2  Qj.^  j^  j^ig  sacrifice 

'  Gr.  laid  up  for. 

24.    made  with  hands:  see  p.  11  25.    that  he  should  :  He  entered 

of  this  chapter.  not  in  such  a  sense  as  tJiat  He  should, 

not.. .like  in  pattern,  i.e.  not  like  &c. 
in  pattern  only,  in  reference  to  ch.  offer  himself :  of  the  Sacrifice  of 
viii.  5.     It  is  the  reality,  not  (as  the  the  Cross.     If  there  were  to  be  a  re- 
Mosaic    Tabernacle)   a   "  copy  and  peated  entrance  of  the  Holy  Place, 
shadow."  there  must  be  also,  as  there  was  in 

to  appear  in   the  presence  :  lit.  the  typical  system,  a  repeated  sacri- 

"  to  shew  himself  visibly  to  the  face."  fice.     See  on  this  the  note  at  ch.  viii. 

Thewordsin  ourVersionsdo  not  give,  3. 

with  the  emphasis  of  the  Greek,  the  26.  since  the  foundation  of  the 
fulness  of  mutual  Self-manifestation,  world.  Notice  the  point  of  view, 
"face  to  face,"  as  it  is  meant  to  The  Sacrifice  "once  ofi"ered"  is  re- 
contrast  with  anything  that  could  trospective,  as  well  as  prospective, 
be  said  of  the  High  Priest  in  the  Its  timelessness  justifies  the  long 
sanctuary,  in  the  dim  light  before  postponement  as  well  as  the  non- 
the  invisible  Presence,  and  screened  repetition.  It  covers  all  sin.  See 
even  then  by  the  cloud  of  incense  note  on  v.  15. 
"lest  he  die,"  Lev.  xvi.  13.  now.  not  temporal,  but,  as  often, 


76 


HEBREWS 


[IX.  24-28 


=  "as  things  actually  are."  See 
amongst  other  places  1  Cor.  xiii.  13, 
XV.  20. 

the  end  (or,  consummation)  of  the 
ages.  The  nearest  parallel  is  1  Cor. 
X.  11,  "the  ends  of  the  ages."  It 
diflFers  from  St  Matthew's  (xiii.  39, 
40,  49,  xxiv.  3,  xxviii.  20),  "  the  con- 
summation of  the  age,"  in  that,  while 
that  speaks  of  the  completion  of  a 
single  age  or  dispensation,  this 
speaks  of  Christ's  coming  in  the 
flesh  as  having  been  the  crown  of 
a  series  of  dispensations.  Cp.  Eph. 
i.  10. 

to  put  away  sin,  lit.  "for  the  dis- 
annulling (it  is  the  same  word  that 
is  used  in  vii.  18)  of  sin."  The  verb 
from  which  it  comes  is  used  in  Gal. 
ii.  21,  iii.  15  of  "making  void."  Sin 
is  viewed  as,  in  idea,  made  as  though 
it  had  not  been. 

27.  inasmuch  as.  The  certainty 
of  the  one  truth  is  a  measure  of  the 
certainty  of  the  other.  As  surely  as 
for  each  one  of  us  there  are  two  things 
in  store  and  no  more,  to  die  once,  and 
then  not  to  be  born  and  die  again, 
but  to  be  judged  as  though  the 
mortal  life  was  complete,  so  surely 
Christ  also  died  once  and  dies  no 
more,  but  is  to  return  in  glory.  It 
is  one  of  the  many  forms  in  which 


the  writer  puts  the  view  that  the 
Sacrifice  of  Christ  was  the  last  act  in 
the  drama.  Sacrifice  in  all  its  forms 
and  meanings  was  consummated  and 
ended. 

28.  to  bear  the  sins  of  many. 
The  combination  of  words,  seeing 
that  the  word  for  "  to  bear "  is  an 
unusual  one,  must  be  taken  to  shew 
that  the  writer  has  in  mind  Isaiah  liii. 
12.  Cp.  1  Pet.  ii.  24.  St  Peter,  by 
adding  the  words  "  up  to  the  tree  " 
(R.V.  marg.),  gives  to  "bear"  the 
sense  of  "carry,  as  on  to  an  altar." 
And  this  may  be  the  case  here  also. 

apart  from  sin.  See  on  ch.  iv.  15. 
The  words  here  seem  to  qualify  "  a 
second  time."  They  are  part  of  the 
contrast  between  the  first  and  second 
Comings.  His  second  will  bo  a  re- 
petition of  His  first,  save  in  its  rela- 
tion to  sin.  The  first  appearance 
was  "to  put  away  sin."  That  pur- 
pose was  fully  accomplished  and  has 
not  to  be  accomplished  again. 

unto  salvation.  See  on  i.  14.  It 
is  one  of  the  instances  (like  Rom.  xiii. 
11)  in  which  the  N.T.  writers  take  up 
the  O.T.  language  with  respect  to 
salvation  (deliverance,  final  righting 
of  wrongs)  as  something  to  be  waited 
for  and  surely  looked  to  :  cp.  Isaiah 
XXV.  9,  Ivi.  1,  &c. 


Introductory  Note  to  X.  1-18. 

The  argument  is  nearly  ended;  but  the  writer  lingers  over  it  to 
emphasize  one  or  two  points  in  the  exposition  and  to  give  more  poignant 
expression  to  one  or  two  of  the  principles  on  which  he  builds.  It  is  made 
clear  that  it  is  not  one  group  of  ceremonies  but  the  whole  sacrificial  system 
("  the  law,"  X.  1)  that  was  a  shadow  of  something  better  to  come.  The  year- 
long cycle  of  observances  carried  in  itself  the  proof  of  its  own  ineflFectiveness. 
In  the  vivid  phrases  of  v.  3  such  a  cycle  of  sacrifices  was  a  continually  re- 
peated calling  to  mind  ("  remembrance  ")  of  sins,  not  their  "  putting  away  " 
(ix.  25).  It  was  "  impossible  "  that  the  blood  of  bulls  and  goats  should  "  take 
away "  sin.  All  ends  with  the  clear  statement  of  the  abolition  of  the  old 
Levitical  system  as  useless  to  effect  its  purpose.  And  here  once  more  he 
finds  support  in  the  old  Scripture — first  {vv.  6-10)  in  Ps.  xl.,  a  new  quotation, 


X.  1-4]  HEBREWS  11 

to  shew  that  it  was  part  of  the  prophetic  conception  of  the  Messiah  that  He 
should  set  a.side  "  sacrifice  and  offering "  and  substitute  for  them  the  sur- 
render of  will ;  then  in  two  passages  of  which  he  has  already  made  much  use ; 
(1)  w.  11-14,  a  final  quotation  from  Ps.  ex.,  dwelling  now  on  the  phrase 
"sit  thou,"  as  the  welcome  to  One  Whose  work  was  done;  (2)  rt?.  15-18, 
in  Jer.  xxxi.  with  its  final  words  "  their  sins  and  iniquities  will  I  remember 
no  more "  and  his  own  comment,  which  sums  up  the  teaching  of  the 
Epistle,  "  where  remission  of  these  is  there  is  no  more  offering  for  sin." 


X.  1-4.    Summing  up  of  whole  argument. 

X.  1  For  the  law  having  a  shadow  of  the  good  things  to 
come,  not  the  very  image  of  the  things,  ^they  can  never  with 
the  same  sacrifices  year  by  year,  which  they  offer  continu- 

2  ally,  make  perfect  them  that  draw  nigh.  Else  would  they 
not  have  ceased  to  be  offered,  because  the  worshippers, 
having  been  once  cleansed,  would  have  had  no  more  con- 

3  science  of  sins  ?    But  in  those  sacrifices  there  is  a  remem- 

4  brance  made  of  sins  year  by  year.  For  it  is  impossible  that 
the  blood  of  bulls  and  goats  should  take  away  sins. 

^  Some  ancient  authorities  read  it  can. 

X.  1.  For.  The  writer  is  giving  the  the  good  things  to  come,  recalls, 

foundation  principles,  at  last  reached,  and  is  meant  to  recall,  ch.  ix.  1 1.  See 

which  are  the  grounds  and  justifica-  note  there, 

tion  of  all  that  he  has  been  saying.  thfycan  never.    With  this  reading 

shadow... very  image.     There  is  a  " they "  must  be  the  same  subject  as 

similar    antithesis    in    Col.    ii.    17,  with  the  following  verb "  they  offer," 

"8hadow...body,"  but  the  figures  are  i.e.  the  Levitical  priests;  and  "the 

not  identical.     The  contrast  there  is  law  having,  &c.,"  although  it  is  in  the 

of  substantiality  ;  there  is  some  re-  nom.  case,  must  be  taken  as  in  abso- 

semblance  to  the  eye  between  the  lute  construction.  A. V.  omits  "they," 

two  things,  but  one  is  fugitive,  un-  making  "the   law"  the  subject  of 

substantial,  the  other  solid,  that  can  "  can  never."    The  difference  is  one 

be  touched.     Here  the  contrast  is  in  of  text,   R.  V.  translating  a  plural 

respect  of  completeness  of  presenta-  verb  (8v'i/ai/rat),  which  has  the  best 

tion.     Both  things  are  spoken  of  as  MS    authority  ;    A.V.   the    singular 

appealing  to  the  eye ;  but  one  is  as  (Suvarat).     The  broken  construction 

an  outline,  the  other  as  the  visible  is  alien  to  the  style  of  the  Epistle ; 

form  of  the  thing  itself.     The  word  and  most  editors  hold  that  ^wavrai 

translated  "  image "  is  the  one  used  is  an   error  which  arose    from   its 

in  Col.  i.  15  to  denote  the  relation  of  neighbourhood  to  the  plural  "they 

the  Divine  Son  to  the  Godhead :  He  offer." 

is  the  "  image  of  the  invisible  God,"  continually.     See   on   ch.   vii.   3. 

God  become  visible.  The  stress  is  on  the  arrangement 


78  HEBREWS  [x.  5-10 

of  sacrifices  in  an  unbroken  yearly  3.  a  remembrance.  Whether  the 
cycle.  As  it  is  pointed  out  in  the  thought  was  in  the  writer's  mind  we 
introductory  note  to  these  verses,  the  cannot  say,  but,  as  commentators 
reference  is  not  to  the  rites  of  the  point  out,  there  is  a  suggestive  con- 
Day  of  Atonement,  which  were  per-  trast  in  the  word  between  this  sen- 
formed  once  a  year  (ch.  ix.  7),  but  to  tence  on  the  sacrifices  of  the  Old 
the  whole  arrangement  of  services  Covenant,  a  "  remembrance  of  sins," 
in  a  yearly  cycle.  and  the  words  of  institution  in  the 

m,ake  perfect.    See  v.  14  and  ch.  commemorative  sacrifice  of  the  New 

ix.  9.  Covenant,  "  in  remembrance  of  Me," 

that  draw  nigh.    See  onch.  iv.  16.  i.e.  of  the  sacrifice  which  has  put 

It  is  here  "  that  are  drawing  nigh,"  away  sin. 
who  are  seeking  access  to  God. 

X.  5-10.    The  meaning  of  Psalm  xl. 

5  Wherefore  when  he  cometh  into  the  world,  he  saith, 

Sacrifice  and  ofiering  thou  wouldest  not, 
But  a  body  didst  thou  prepare  for  me  ; 

6  In  whole  burnt  ofierings  and  sacrifices  for  sin  thou  hadst 

no  pleasure. 

7  Then  said  I,  Lo,  I  am  come 

(In  the  roll  of  the  book  it  is  written  of  me) 
To  do  thy  will,  0  God. 

8  Saying  above,  Sacrifices  and  ofiferings  and  whole  burnt 
offerings  and  sacrifices  for  sin  thou  wouldest  not,  neither 
hadst  pleasure  therein  (the  which  are  offered  according  to 

9  the  law),  then  hath  he  said,  Lo,  I  am  come  to  do  thy  will. 
He  taketh  away  the  first,  that  he  may  establish  the  second. 

10  ^By  which  will  we  have  been  sanctified  through  the  offering 
of  the  body  of  Jesus  Christ  once  for  all. 

1  Or,  In 

General  Note  on  vv.  5-10. 

The  words  of  Ps.  xl.  might  have  been  quoted  simply  as  one  of  the  most 
pointed  expressions  of  the  sense,  which  colours  so  much  of  the  prophetic 
Books  of  the  O.T.,  that  "  to  obey  is  better  than  sacrifice."  But  the  writer 
treats  the  Psalm  as  though  it  would  be  recognized  by  his  readers  as  having 
a  special  Messianic  reference,  and  puts  the  words  "  Lo,  I  come  (not  to  ofi"er 
the  sacrifices  of  the  Law,  but)  to  do  thy  vriU"  into  the  mouth  of  the  Messiah 
Himself  as  He  "  cometh  into  the  world." 

We  can  hardly  be  wrong  in  assigning  to  the  quotation  a  special  purpose 
in  respect  to  the  argument  of  the  Epistle.  It  is  the  last  of  the  three  great 
prophetic  sayings  on  which  that  argument  is  rested.  Ps.  ex.  was  quoted  to 
shew  that  the  Priesthood  of  the  Law  was  confessedly  to  give  way  to  a  Priest- 


X.  5-10] 


HEBREWS 


79 


hood  of  a  higher  order.  Jer.  xxxi.  was  quoted  to  shew  that  the  Covenant 
of  Sinai  was  to  be  superseded  by  a  better  Covenant. 

Of  what  nature  were  the  new  Priesthood  and  tlie  New  Covenant  ?  They 
have  been  described  necessarily  to  a  great  extent  in  figurative  language 
drawn  from  the  Levitical  system.  Was  there  danger  of  misunderstanding, 
of  materialistic  intei-pretation  ?  The  third  quotation  is  to  shew  that  at  the 
heart  of  the  prophetic  teaching  was  the  sense  tha,t  Sacrifice  itself  was  a  figure, 
and  in  any  material  form  was  to  pass  away  ;  that  its  whole  meaning  and  pur- 
pose was  attained  in  the  surrender  of  the  will :  "  He  taketh  away  the  first 
that  He  may  establish  the  second."  We  cannot  but  think  of  the  words  with 
which,  after  the  long  discourse  upon  the  Bread  of  Life,  St  John  represents 
our  Lord  as  warning  His  disciples  against  materialistic  interpretation  or  de- 
duction :  "It  is  the  spirit  that  quickeneth,"  John  vi.  63. 

The  quotation  is  taken,  yf\t\\  only  unimportant  exceptions  literally,  from 
the  LXX  and  reproduces  the  curious  variation  found  in  that  Version  of  "  a 
body  didst  thou  prepare  [i.e.  make  fit  in  all  its  organs]  for  me,"  where  the 
Hebrew  has  "mine  ears  hast  thou  opened."  It  has  been  explained  as  a 
textual  corruption  in  an  early  copy  of  the  LXX,  which  seems  just  possible, 
but  the  prevailing  view  is  that  it  was  an  inteiT^retative  gloss,  a  purposed 
enlargement  of  the  statement  to  meet  the  sense :  the  original  spoke  of 
"  opening  the  ear " ;  the  translator  added  "  not  one  avenue  only  by  which 
mind  can  reach  mind,  but  all — a  human  nature  perfect  in  aU  its 
sensibilities." 


5.  when  he  cometh.  See  note 
on  ch.  i.  6. 

7.  Lo,  I  am  come.  The  phrase 
expresses  the  ready  and  instanta- 
neous obedience. 

roll.  The  word  means  literally 
"a  little  head,"  and  is  supposed  to 
have  been  applied  to  the  knob  at  the 
end  of  the  roller  on  which  a  roll  of 
parchment  was  woimd.  This  suits 
its  use  in  Bzek.  ii.  9,  iii.  1,  and  in 
this  place.  It  has  been  suggested 
by  modern  critics  that  Ps.  xl.  is  of 
the  date  of  Josiah  and  that  the  "roll 
of  the  Book"  is  the  "Book  of  the 
Law"  which  Hilkiah  the  High  Priest 
found  in  the  Temple,  2  Chron.  xxxiv. 
14  f. 

leritten  of  me.  R.V.  in  the  Psalm 
oflFers  the  alternative  "  prescribed  to 
me,"  as  though  it  meant  "my  duty, 
my  part,  is  prescribed  in  the  Law." 
This  gives  more  relevance  to  the 
clause  than  to  take  it  of  prophecy. 


8.  Saying  above... then  hath  he 
said....  There  is  no  contrast  be- 
tween "above"  and  "then."  If  there 
were,  it  should  be  "having  said." 
"Then"  means  "at  the  same  time," 
"while  he  says  in  the  earlier  part  of 
the  sentence... at  the  same  time  he 
says...."  The  writer  would  make  it 
clear  that  the  two  utterances  are 
intimately  related  to  one  another. 
The  "coming  to  do  the  will"  is  the 
other  side  of  the  disallowance  of 
material  sacrifice. 

10.  By  {marg.  In)  which  will.  The 
literal  rendering  is  "in,"  and  it  is  less 
open  to  misunderstanding.  It  is  not 
meant  merely  that  it  was  God's  Will 
that  Christians  should  be  sanctified 
(or,  consecrated)  by  the  ofiering  of 
Christ's  sacrifice;  but  that  in  the 
perfect  doing  of  God's  Will  by  Christ 
there  was  a  virtue  which  consecrated 
His  people. 


80  HEBREWS  [x.  11-14 


Additional  Note  on  v.  10. 

Though  we  are  at  the  point  at  which  our  thoughts  are  fully  directed  to 
the  real,  spiritual  facts,  to  the  antitype,  we  yet  do  not  get  whoUy  free  from 
metaphors  drawn  from  the  type  :  "  sanctified  "  or  "  consecrated  "  belongs  to 
the  language  of  the  Covenant,  meaning  "set  apart  as  God's  people,"  and 
the  consecration  needed  the  "oflFering"  of  sacrifice.  But  again  the  words 
"  the  Body  of  Jesus  Christ "  must  be  meant  to  take  us  back  to  the  words 
quoted  from  Ps.  xl.,  "  a  body  didst  thou  prepare  for  me."  The  Sacrifice  of 
which  we  are  speaking  (we  are  reminded  again)  is  that  ofi"ering  of  the 
Body — the  sacrifice  of  "Will,  which  was  rendered  possible  by  the  Incarnation, 
and  which  is  expressly  contrasted  with  "  sacrifices  and  ofi'erings  and  whole 
burnt  ofierings  and  sacrifices  for  sin,"  i.e.  with  what  the  world  had  hitherto 
understood  by  sacrifice. 

It  is  difficult,  throughout,  to  say  how  far  the  imagery  of  the  Christian 
Sacraments,  familiar  to  writer  and  readers,  was  consciously  influencing 
expressions  or  turns  of  thought ;  but  it  is  tempting  to  think  that,  as  iu 
"this  is  the  Blood  of  the  Covenant"  in  ix.  20,  and  in  the  "remembrance"  of 
X.  3,  so  here,  in  the  "offering  of  the  Body  of  Jesus  Christ,"  there  is  present 
a  shadow  of  the  other  words  of  consecration,  "  This  is  my  Body  which  is  for 
you." 


X.  11-14.    Meaning  of  "sat  down"  in  Ps.  ex. 

11  And  every  Spriest  indeed  standeth  day  by  day  ministering 
and  offering  many  times  the  same  sacrifices,  the  which  can 

12  never  take  away  sins :  but  he,  Avhen  he  had  offered  one 
sacrifice  for  ^  sins  for  ever,  sat  down  on  the  right  hand  of 

13  God  :  from  henceforth  expecting  till  his  enemies  be  made 

14  the  footstool  of  his  feet.     For  by  one  offering  he  hath 
perfected  for  ever  them  that  are  sanctified. 

^  Some  ancient  authorities  read  high  priest. 
^  Or,  sins,  for  ever  sat  down,  c&c. 

General  Note  on  w.  11-14. 

The  writer  brings  to  bear  upon  the  point  of  the  singleness  and  eternal 
results  of  the  Sacrifice  of  the  true  High  Priest  some  words  in  the  much  quoted 
prophecy  of  Ps.  ex.  which  have  not  yet  received  separate  emphasis.  The 
Priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek  was  bidden  to  "  sit "  at  God's  right 
hand,  and  to  sit  until  His  enemies  were  made  His  footstool.  This  meant 
that  His  Priestly  Ministration  was  viewed  as  completed.  It  is  contrasted 
here  not  with  the  yearly  service  of  the  High  Priest  on  the  Day  of  Atone- 
ment, but  with  the  daily  service  of  the  Priests  who  stand  (in  the  attitude 
of  readiness  for  further  service)  offering  the  daily  sacrifice. 


X.  15-18] 


HEBREWS 


81 


11.  take  away.  It  is  in  the 
Greek  a  different  word  from  that 
used  in  r.  4,  and  means  literally  to 
"strip  off,"  as  of  a  clinging  garment. 
It  is  the  word  used  in  2  Cor.  iii.  16  of 
stripping  off  a  veil.  See  note  on  ch. 
xii.  1,  "the  sin  which  doth  so  easily 
beset  us." 

12.  for  ever  (it  is  a  more  coloured 
and  emphatic  phrase  than  our  "for 
ever";  rather,  "for  a  perpetuity," 
"without  break  or  limit").  The  re- 
petition of  the  phrase  after  "hath 
perfected"  in  ».  14  shews  that  the  Re- 
visers are  right  in  their  punctuation 
in  the  text.  The  effect  of  the  offering 
was  as  complete  and  continuous  as  it 
was  purposed  to  be. 

14.  them  tJiat  are  sanctified. 
This  is  not  the  Greek  perfect  par- 


ticiple, as  in  V.  10  (which  is  there 
rendered  by  "[have  beenjsanctified"), 
but  the  present.  It  illustrates  at 
once  the  elasticity  and  the  precision 
of  the  writer's  language.  To  sanctify 
(or,  to  consecrate),  as  we  have  seen, 
is  to  admit  men,  or  to  restore  them, 
to  the  full  position  as  members  of 
the  consecrated  people.  The  phrase 
here  "hath  perfected... them  that  are 
sanctified"  corresponds  as  a  whole 
to  the  tense  of  "we  have  been  sancti- 
fied" in  ».  10  ;  but  it  gives  a  further 
aspect.  It  is  on  GocCs  side  that  the 
work  is  complete ;  no  more  is  needed. 
That  is  stated  in  both  phrases.  But 
in  the  latter  one  we  see  also  the 
man  individually  seeking  and  ac- 
cepting the  "  sanctification "  pro- 
vided. 


X.  15-18.    The  New  Covenant  means  that  sacrifice 

IS   ENDED. 

15  And  the  Holy  Ghost  also  beareth  witness  to  us  :  for  after 
he  hath  said, 

16  This  is  the  ^covenant  that  ^I  will  make  with  them 
After  those  days,  saith  the  Lord  ; 

I  will  put  my  laws  on  their  heart, 
And  upon  their  mind  also  will  I  write  them  ; 
the7i  saith  he, 

17  And  their  sins  and  their  iniquities  will  I  remember  no 

more, 

18  Now  where  remission  of  these  is,  there  is  no  more  oflfering 
for  sin. 

1  Or,  testament  ^  Qj-,  j  y;iii  covenant. 


15.  the  Holy  Ghost  also  :  i.e.  we 
have  a  witness  in  the  definite  state- 
ments of  Holy  Scripture.  It  illus- 
trates well  the  freedom  of  quotation 
in  N.T.  writers  if  we  notice  that, 
while  iu  this  second  quotation  of 
Jeremiah's  prophecy  the  writer 
quotes  from  memory  and  departs 

H. 


more  widely  from  exact  verbal  ac- 
curacy, this  is  the  occasion  on  which 
he  definitely  speaks  of  the  words  as 
the  words  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

16.  [then  saith  he.^  As  the  italics 
indicate,  these  words  are  an  interpre- 
tative insertion  of  R.V.  (A.  V.  has  not 
them) ;  and  it  seems  more  likely  that 

6 


82  HEBREWS  [x.  19-25 

the    division    between    the    dating  dering  unnecessary  any  further  in- 

clause  ("After  he  hath  said,  &c.")  sertion. 

and  the  substantive  statement  is  at  18.     "By  promising  to  forget  He 

"  saith  the  Lord,"  these  words,  al-  has  forgiven,  and  therefore  no  more 

though  they  belong  to  the  quotation,  sacrifice  in  plea  for  forgiveness  is 

serving  also  to  introduce  it  as  from  necessary." 

the  writer  of  the  Epistle,  and  ren- 

Here  the  strictly  argumentative  portion  of  the  Epistle  ends.  The  argu- 
ment has  been  coloured  by  the  purpose  of  exhortation ;  and  so  the  hortatory 
portion  which  follows  will  add  points  (as  the  hortatory  passages  hitherto 
have  done)  to  the  argument.  But  the  tone  will  become  at  once  more  urgent 
and  more  tender,  and  the  practical  risks  and  duties  which  went  along  with 
the  spiritual  conditions  which  we  have  been  considering  will  come  more 
fully  into  view. 


X.  19-25.    The  practical  conclusion. 

19  Having  therefore,  brethren,  boldness  to  enter  into  the  holy 

20  place  by  the  blood  of  Jesus,  by  the  way  which  he  dedicated 
for  us,  a  new  and  living  way,  through  the  veil,  that  is  to 

21  say,  his  flesh  ;  and  having  a  great  priest  over  the  house  of 

22  God ;  let  us  draw  near  with  a  true  heart  in  ^  fulness  of 
faith,  having  our  hearts  sprinkled  from  an  evil  ^conscience, 

23  and  our  bodies  washed  with  pure  water :  let  us  hold  fast 
the  confession  of  our  hope  that  it  waver  not ;  for  he  is 

24  faithful  that  promised :  and  let  us  consider  one  another 

25  to  provoke  unto  love  and  good  works  ;  not  forsaking  the 
assembling  of  ourselves  together,  as  the  custom  of  some  is, 
but  exhorting  one  another ;  and  so  much  the  more  as  ye 
see  the  day  drawing  nigh. 

^  Or,  full  assurance 

'  Or,  conscience :  and  having  our  bodies  washed  with  pure  water  let  us  hold 
fast,  <&c. 

General  Note  on  vv.  19-25. 

In  this  passage  the  writer  gathers  into  a  sentence  both  the  conclusions 
to  which  he  has  brought  his  readers,  and  the  exhortation  which  he  will  base 
upon  them. 

Vv.  19-21  sum  up  again  the  advantages  secured  to  those  who  are  included 
in  the  New  Covenant,  viz.  real  access  to  God  and  real  atonement  for  sin. 
The  framework  of  the  paragraph  is  the  same  as  that  of  ch.  iv.  14-16, 
to  which  it  carries  us  back  by  its  repetition  of  many  of  the  phrases 
("having  therefore"  [then]   "a  great  [high]  priest,"   "boldness,"   "draw 


X.  19-25]  HEBREWS  83 

near,"  "our  confession").  The  resemblance  is  too  great  to  be  accidental. 
But  the  differences,  which  are  equally  striking,  indicate  how  much  ground 
has  been  gained  in  the  interval.  The  expressions  are  fuller  and  more 
explicit.  To  take  two  of  the  phrases :  (1)  the  Great  Priest.  It  is  the 
"great  High  Priest"  of  iv.  14,  but  a  good  deal  is  added :  {a)  The  change 
from  High  Priest  to  Priest  may  be  accidental — either  expression  is  appro- 
priate— but  it  suits  the  new  point  of  view,  when  it  has  been  made  clear  that 
it  is  not  merely  the  ceremonies  peculiar  to  the  High  Priest,  but  the  whole 
system  of  sacrificial  atonement  that  is  in  question :  (h)  the  "  Blood  of  Jesus" 
is  a  phrase  intelligible  now,  but  which  would  have  been  premature  in  ch.  iv. 
(see  on  the  wrong  insertion  of  the  words  "by  himself"  in  ch.  i.  3).  We  are  now 
summing  up  the  discussion  of  ch.  ix.,  in  which  we  have  asked  the  question 
what  the  true  High  Priest  "  has  to  offer " ;  and  have  passed  in  review  the 
typical  expiations  by  "blood"  under  the  Law,  the  inaugui-ation  of  the 
Covenant,  the  consecration  of  the  Tabernacle  and  of  the  High  Priest  him- 
self: (c)  the  addition  of  the  words  "over  the  house  of  God"  (».  21) reminds 
us  that  the  High  Priest  of  our  confession  is  "great"  not  only  (which  was 
the  point  to  be  made  good  in  iv.  14  f.)  as  the  greater  than  Aaron,  but  also  as 
the  greater  than  Moses.  They  take  us  back  to  the  words  in  ch.  iii.  1-6,  and 
we  are  to  put  into  them  the  new  meaning  which  has  been  given  to  them  by 
the  picture  in  the  later  chapters  of  the  "  Mediator  of  the  New  Covenant." 
(2)  the  entrance  into  the  holy  place.  We  notice,  again,  how  the  thought  of 
the  power  of  perpetual  access  to  God,  as  typified  in  the  yearly  entrance  of 
the  High  Priest  into  the  Holiest,  has  grown  in  fulness  during  the  argument. 
It  was  already  before  us  on  both  sides  in  ch.  iv.  But  nothing  in  the  expres- 
sion went  necessarily  beyond  the  literal  interpretation  of  the  typical 
ceremony.  The  High  Priest,  though  of  more  august  Personality  and  in 
a  higher  sphere,  might  still  be,  as  the  Levitical  High  Priest  was,  the 
representative  of  the  people,  presenting  their  submission  and  vrinning  a 
hearing  for  their  i^rayers.  In  ch.  vi.  20  a  notable  step  was  taken, 
though  (after  the  vsriter's  manner)  in  a  single  phrase,  unemphasized  at 
the  moment  and  not  followed  up;  "within  the  veil,  whither  as  our  fore- 
runner Jesus  entered  for  us " :  that  was  a  further  interpretation  of  the 
figure  ;  but  again  it  could  be  satisfied  with  the  explanation  that  the  veil  is 
to  be  lifted,  for  the  followers,  in  another  life.  In  the  present  passage  the 
believer  is  not  conceived  as  entering  only  by  a  representative,  nor  only  in 
another  life,  but  himself.,  now  and  always.  The  power  of  access  to  God, 
typified  in  the  Levitical  ceremony,  is  already,  "  in  the  Blood  of  Jesus,"  fully 
his.  This  is  put  beyond  doubt  by  the  further  expressions,  new  (in  their 
definiteness  at  least)  in  the  Epistle,  which  imply  that  the  believer  has  him- 
self received  the  High-priestly  consecration.  That  is  the  meaning  of  the 
"sprinkling"  (i.e.  with  blood)  and  "washing  with  pure  water"  of  v.  22, 
ceremonies  which  belonged  to  the  consecration  of  a  High  Priest. 

What  has  been  said  illustrates  the  fi-eedom  with  which  the  wi-iter  treats 
the  typical  relation  between  the  Levitical  ceremonies  and  the  spiritual 
realities  which  he  sees  behind  them.  The  con-espondence  which  he  insists 
on  permanently  is  in  general  idea,  not  of  detail  with  detail.  The  truths 
imaged  are  themselves  described  in  figures,  figures  boiTOwed  generally 

6—2 


84 


HEBREWS 


[X.  19-25 


from  the  typical  "  copies " ;  and  the  figures  change.  It  is  here  that  we 
must  look  for  the  explanation  of  a  turn  in  the  passage  which  has  raised 
much  question  :  "Through  the  veil,  that  is  to  say,  his  flesh."  Westcott  felt 
the  difficulty  of  the  explanatory  clause  so  much  that  he  would  attach  it, 
against  the  natural  order  of  the  words,  not  to  "veil,"  but  to  "new  and  living 
way."  Yet  although  the  interpretation  of  the  veil  as  "his  flesh"  is 
unexpected,  it  is  one  that  we  can  understand,  and  one  which  suits  the 
context.  It  suits  it,  however,  because  of  the  particular  turn  which  has 
been  given  to  the  main  thought.  It  would  have  been  out  of  place  earlier  in 
the  Epistle.  The  "  veil,"  in  the  general  figure,  is  what  separates  (and  yet,  in 
a  sense,  unites)  the  outer  and  inner  Tabernacle — this  world  and  another — 
the  aspiring  soul  of  man  and  the  realized  Presence  of  God.  It  hangs 
between  them.  One  side  of  it  faces  one  order  of  things,  and  the  other 
another  order.  It  is  the  thin,  the  only,  barrier.  And  it  can  be  lifted,  can 
become  a  passage  instead  of  a  barrier.  "Such  a  veil,"  says  the  writer  in  this 
place,  "  was  Christ's  human  nature  in  its  physical,  mortal  aspect."  In  it  He 
came  near  to  man :  and  then  He  rent  it,  passed  through  it  into  heaven. 
And  His  people's  hearts  could  go  with  Him,  could  from  thenceforth  have  in 
Him  perpetual  access  to  the  Father.  It  is  difficult  to  think  that  the  writer 
had  not  in  mind  the  rending  of  the  Temple  veil  "  from  the  top  to  the  bot- 
tom "  at  the  moment  of  our  Lord's  Death  upon  the  Cross  (Matt,  xxvii.  51). 


19.  Having  therefore  boldness. 
The  relation  to  ch.  iv.  14  seems  to 
shew  that  "having"  means  here 
"seeing  that  we  have,"  and  there- 
fore "  having  boldness  "  means  "  hav- 
ing ground  for  boldness."  "  There- 
fore" sums  up  the  whole  preceding 
argument. 

brethren.  It  is  worth  while  to 
notice  the  other  places  in  the 
Epistle  in  which  the  address  is 
used,  viz.  ch.  iii.  1  and  12,  xiii.  22. 
It  is  an  appeal  of  tenderness,  "  My 
brothers."  Cp.  also  St  Paul's  use 
of  the  address,  as  in  2  Cor.  xiii.  1 1, 
Gal.  vi.  18. 

by.  It  is  the  same  preposition 
(literally  "in")  which  is  rendered 
in  ch.  ix.  25,  "with  [blood  not  his 
own]."  It  expresses  that  in  virtue 
of  which  the  priest  enters. 

20.  dedicated.  It  is  the  same 
verb  as  in  ch.  ix.  18.  It  meant  to 
"make  new"  or  to  "use  newly,"  and 
so,  as  we  say,  to  "open"  or  "in- 
augurate," as  of  a  building  (cp.  the 
Feast  of  "Dedication  " — in  Greek  the 


cognate  word — John  x.  22)  or  an 
undertaking.  He  inaugurated  it  by 
treading  it  first  Himself,  as  the  "fore- 
runner," ch.  vi.  20. 

a... living  way.  The  epithet  is 
meant  to  remind  us  that  even  the 
"  way "  is  a  figure :  it  is  a  way  for 
spirit,  a  way  "  not  made  with  hands." 
Christ  "  dedicated  the  way " ;  but 
yet  it  is  equally  true  that  He  "is 
the  way,"  John  xiv.  6. 

that  is  to  say,  his  flesh.  For  this 
difficult  phrase  see  what  has  been 
said  in  the  general  note  above. 

22.  a  true  heart.  The  "heart" 
in  the  N.T.,  as  in  ancient  literature 
generally,  is  the  centre  of  the  physical 
life  and,  by  transference,  the  centre 
and  seat  of  the  moral  life,  the  affec- 
tions, will,  intelligence,  conscience. 
A  "  true  "  heart  follows  the  analogy 
of  the  use  of  "true"  in  ch.  viii.  2, 
true  or  real  as  opposed  to  shams  and 
copies.  It  is  therefore  the  equiva- 
lent of  the  O.T.  phrases,  "  the  whole 
heart,"  "all  the  heart,"  "a  perfect 
heart." 


X.  19-25] 


HEBREWS 


85 


fulness,or  "full  assurance"  (marg.). 
See  on  eh.  vi.  11. 

our  hearts  sprinkled.  For  the 
figure  op.  St  Paul's  "circumcision 
of  the  heart,"  Rom.  ii.  29. 

The  primary  reference  is  to  the 
ceremonies  prescribed  in  Exod.  xxix. 
for  the  consecration  of  a  High  Priest. 
All  God's  people  under  the  New 
Covenant  are  to  have  the  consecra- 
tion and  the  privileges  of  a  High 
Priest  (cp.  1  Pet.  ii.  9;  Rev.  i.  6). 
The  sprinkling  therefore  is  with 
the  blood  of  sacrifice :  but  whereas 
the  words  in  Exod.  speak  only  of  the 
"garments,"  the  writer  substitutes 
the  more  effectual  sprinkling  of  the 
heart.  But  two  other  thoughts  seem 
to  be  in  view  :  (1)  Of  the  prophecy  of 
Ezekiel  xxxvi.  25 f.,  "I  will  sprinkle 
clean  water  upon  you  and  ye  shall  be 
clean... A  new  heart  will  I  give  you." 
(This  seems  to  be  the  source  of  the 
"pure"  water.)  (2)  Of  Christian 
Baptism.  Cp.  1  Pet.  iii.  21,  R.V., 
"baptism,  not  the  putting  away  of 
the  filth  of  the  flesh,  but  the  in- 
teiTOgation  of  a  good  conscience." 
This  reference  is  made  more  clear 
by  the  association  of  the  washing 
with  the  "  confession  of  our  hope." 

The  "sprinkling"  and  "washing"  do 
not  imply  two  ceremonies  or  processes. 
They  are  two  symbolical  expressions 
which  mutually  explain  each  other : 
"our  hearts  sprinkled  from  (i.e.  so  as 
to  free  us  from)  an  evil  conscience, 
even  as  our  body  is  washed  with 
pure  (i.e.  cleansing — it  is  Ezekiel's 
word  and  to  be  read  with  St  Peter's 
commentary  on  it)  water." 

sprinkled  from,  the  constioiction 
as  in  "  washed  from."  Sprinkled  [so 
as  to  be  cleansed]  from. 

anevil  conscience  =  a  consciousness 
of  gnilt.  It  is  opposed  to  a  "good 
conscience," ch.  xiii.  18.  Cp.  "cleanse 
our  conscience,"  ix.  14. 


23.  hold  fast  the  confession. 
"Confession"  (cp.  ch.  iii.  1,  iv.  14), 
as  always  in  the  N.T.  (cp.  2  Cor. 
ix.  13 ;  1  Tim.  vi.  12),  has  the  sense 
of  a  public  profession  of  Chris- 
tian belief  The  word  came  in 
ecclesiastical  Greek  to  be  used  for 
the  profession  of  faith  in  Holy 
Baptism ;  and  that  sense  may  be 
growing  in  the  N.T.  as  appears 
especially  in  this  place  and  in 
1  Tim.  vi.  12.  If  so,  the  word 
links  itself  with  the  preceding 
words,  which  recall  Baptism.  In 
any  case  it  leads  directly  to  the 
exhortation  to  maintain  their  social 
Christian  life.  With  the  "  confession 
of  our  hope,"  cp.  ch.  iii.  6,  "the 
glorying  of  our  hope,"  and  see  on 
vi.  11. 

that  it  wave?  not.  As  is  clear  in 
the  Greek,  "it"  is  not  the  "hope," 
as  we  should  be  apt  to  take  it  in  the 
English,  but  the  "confession."  The 
phrase  is  used  properly  of  a  support 
that  does  not  give  or  sway. 

he  is  faithful.     Cp.  ch.  xi.  11. 

24.  let  us  consider  one  another. 
See  on  ch.  iii.  1,  "consider."  As 
was  said  there,  it  is  probably  not 
an  accident  that  the  same  verb 
should  be  used  in  the  two  places, 
at  the  opening  severally  of  the 
doctrinal  and  of  the  practical  parts 
of  the  Epistle:  "Set  all  your 
thoughts  on  the  Apostle  and  High 
Priest,"  "  Set  all  your  thoughts  on 
one  another."  The  practical  sugges- 
tion, thought  worthy  of  a  place  in 
this  summary  beforehand  of  their 
duty,  is  that  they  must  not  foster 
their  sense  of  weakness  and  misgiv- 
ing by  letting  their  religion  become 
selfish,  by  losing  the  strength  of 
common  action  and  mutual  encour- 
agement. Notice  that  the  thought 
is  repeated  from  iii.  13,  14,  "exhort 
one  another,   &c."     The  reason   is 


86  HEBREWS  [x.  26-31 

there  given  in  the  words  "  while  it  is         the  day :    the  day  of  the  Lord's 

calledTo-day,"  "To-day,"  there,  being  coming,  1  Cor.  iii.  13.     It  is  spoken 

equivalent  to  the  time  before  the  ar-  of  generally  in  the  N.T.  as  near  at 

rival  of  what  is  here  called  "the  day."  hand,  as  James  v.  8,  "The  coming  of 

to  provoke  unto  love:  lit.  "to  the  the  Lord  is  at  hand";  1  Pet.  iv.  7, 

end  of  sharpening  the  edge  of  love."  "  the  end  of  all  things  is  at  hand," 

To  have  others  much  in  mind  is  the  &c. :  but  the  expression  here  is  more 

way  to  warm  the  heart  towards  them.  definite,  "  see  the  day  approaching." 

For  the  sequence  in  vv.  22,  23,  24  of  The  words  gain  in  impressiveness  if 

faith,  hope,  love,  see  on  ch.  vi.  10.-  we  think  of  them  as  describing  the 

25.     the  assembling  of  ourselves  feeling  of  those  who,  with  sinking 

together.     The  writer  does  not  say,  hearts,  witnessed  the  near  approach 

but  it  is  natural  to  think  that  it  would  of  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and 

be  in  his  mind,  that  when  they  so  as-  with  it  of  the  system  of  worship  of 

sembled  themselves  together  it  would  which  it  was  the  centre.     They  then 

be  to  "break  bread,"  and  so  to  re-  shew  us  the  temporal  background 

mind  themselves  of  the  truth  of  the  to  that  picture  of  a  dispirited  and 

great  Offering  of  Avhich  he  has  been  despondentChurchwhich  the  Epistle 

speaking  and  of  its  relation  to  them-  generally  presents, 
selves  and  to  the  Christian  body. 

Introductory  Note  to  ch.  X.  26-XII.  4. 
The  passage  from  x.  26  to  xii.  4  divides  itself  into  three  portions  alleging 
three  grounds  for  his  exhortation,  viz. : 

(1)  X.  26-31,  the  dangers  of  apostasy. 

(2)  X.  32-end,  the  memory  of  their  own  former  steadfastness. 

(3)  xi.  and  xii.  1-4,  the  historical  glory  of  faith. 

X.  26-31.    The  daggers  of  apostasy. 

26  For  if  we  sin  wilfully  after  that  we  have  received  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth,  there  remaineth  no  more  a  sacrifice 

27  for  sins,  but  a  certain  fearful  expectation  of  judgement, 
and  a  ^fierceness  of  fire  which  shall  devour  the  adversaries. 

28  A  man  that  hath  set  at  nought  Moses'  law  dieth  without 

29  compassion  on  the  word  q/two  or  three  witnesses  :  of  how 
much  sorer  punishment,  think  ye,  shall  he  be  judged  worthy, 
who  hath  trodden  under  foot  the  Son  of  God,  and  hath 
counted  the  blood  of  the  covenant,  wherewith  he  was 
sanctified,  ^an  unholy  thing,  and  hath  done  despite  unto 

30  the  Spirit  of  grace  ?  For  we  know  him  that  hath  said, 
Vengeance  belongeth  unto  me,  I  will  recompense.     And 

31  again,  The  Lord  shall  judge  his  people.  It  is  a  fearful  thing 
to  faU  into  the  hands  of  the  living  God. 

^  Or,  jealousy  2  Qj..  a  common  thing. 


X.  26-31] 


HEBREWS 


87 


26,  27.  These  verses  must  be 
read  as  in  sequence  to  v.  25.  This 
is  what  will  happen  if  "the  day" 
comes  upon  them,  as  St  Paxil  would 
say,  "  as  a  thief."  The  English  ver- 
sions fail  to  give  the  force  of  the 
present  tenses,  "if  we  are  found 
sinning,"  "  there  is  not  still  remain- 
ing any  sacrifice."  Two  things  should 
be  noticed  :  (1)  that  it  is  of  persist- 
ent sin  that  the  writer  is  speaking ; 
(2)  that  the  special  sin  in  question  is 
the  sin  of  apostasy :  cp.  ch.  iii.  12, 13, 
where  "sin"  and  the  "falling  away 
from  the  living  God"  are  equivalents ; 
also  2  Pet.  ii.  4,  where  "  when  they 
sinned  "  is  the  expression  for  the  fall 
of  the  apostate  angels. 

there  remaineth  no  more  a  sacri- 
fice. Just  as  in  respect  of  teaching 
in  ch.  vi.,  so  here  of  atoning  sacrifice, 
no  one  must  think  (as  conceivably 
he  might  have  done  under  the  Levi- 
tical  system)  of  a  further,  a  fresh 
and  more  effectual  sin-oflFering.  For 
the  use  of  "  remaineth  "  see  on  ch.  iv. 
6.  It  is  to  be  noticed  however  that 
as  its  proper  meaning  is  of  something 
"  held  in  reserve,"  as  a  further  boon 
or  opportunity,  its  use  here  in  the 
second  case,  of  the  expectation  of 
judgement,  has  a  shade  of  irony. 

27.  fierceness  (marg.  jealousy)  of 
fire.  The  reading  of  the  margin  is 
the  literal  and  the  right  rendering. 
A  "jealousy  of  fire"  is  a  jealousy 
which  burns  like  fire.  Very  pro- 
bably the  word  (C^Xor,  zeal)  by  ety- 
mology meant  "fervom-,"  and  so 
"  emotion  at  boiling-point " ;  but  in 
all  Greek  iLsagc  it  had  acquired  a 
moral  meaning,  viz.  jealousy.  The 
phrases  here  grow  directly  out  of 
the  thought  of  "  the  day,"  with  which 
they  are  frequently  connected  in  the 
prophetic  writings,  as  in  Zeph.  i.  18, 
"  the  day  of  God's  wrath  :  the  whole 
land  shall  be  devoured  by  the  fire  of 


his  jealousy."  But  cp.  also  Is.  xxvi. 
11,  "They  shall  see  thy  zeal  for  this 
people... the  fire  shall  devour  thine 
adversaries."  It  is  to  be  remembered 
that  the  first  description  of  God  as 
"a  jealous  God"  occurs  in  the  2d 
Commandment,  of  which  the  subject 
is  idolatry,  i.e.,  in  the  language  of  this 
Epistle,  "  apostasy."  Jealousy,  in  its 
human  sense,  is  the  other  side  of  a 
love  which  cannot  bear  a  rival. 

28.  dieth.  The  tenses  are  the 
same  as  in  the  references  to  the 
ceremonial  law ;  see  on  ch.  ix.  6, 
"go."  " Dieth "  =  is  by  the  Law  to 
die.  The  reference  is  to  Deut.  xvii. 
2-7,  from  which  the  words  come 
verbally.  (This  seems  to  be  the 
point  of  adding  "under  two  or 
three  witnesses.")  It  is  to  be  noticed 
that  that  passage  also  refers  not  to 
ordinary  ofl'ences,  but  to  idolatry. 
The  case  is  the  same  with  the  two 
quotations  which  follow  (in  vv.  30,  31) 
from  Deut.  xxxii.  35,  36. 

29.  A  triple  characterizing  of  the 
oflFences,  bringing  out  their  impiety, 
suicidal  folly,  ingmtitude.  But  when 
in  an  Apostolic  writer  such  expres- 
sions run  into  a  triple  form  we 
always  expect  the  more  or  less  con- 
scious reference  to  the  threefold 
Christian  Revelation ;  and  in  this 
case  we  can  hardly  fail  to  find  it — 
the  ^vi-ong  done  to  the  Father  in  the 
rejection  of  His  Son,  to  the  Son  in 
the  scorn  poured  on  the  Covenant 
sealed  in  His  own  Blood,  to  the 
Spirit  in  the  meeting  of  grace  with 
despite. 

trodden  under  foot.  It  is  the 
word  used  in  Matt  v.  13  of  the 
"  salt  which  has  lost  its  savour,"  and 
still  more  pointedly,  id.  vii.  6,  of  the 
"  pearls  cast  before  swine." 

Juilh  done  de.spite  unto,  i.e.  "treated 
with  contempt,"  "insulted."  "De- 
spite "  (shortened  in  modern  speech 


88 


HEBREWS 


[X.  32-39 


to  "spite")  comes  etymologically 
from  Lat.  despectus.     Fr.  depit. 

Spirit  of  grace.  "  This  title  is 
■unique  in  the  N.T.  but  it  is  used  by 
the  prophet  Zechariah  in  a  promise 
(xii.  10)  which  looks  forward  to 
Messianic  times."  Swete,  The  Holy 
Spirit  ill  the  New  Testament,  p.  251. 

30.  Vengeance  is  mine.  As  has 
been  said  above,  the  quotation  is 
from  Deut.  xxxii.  35,  but  it  is  not 
verbally  accurate.  The  words  are 
quoted  in  Rom.  xii.  19,  in  the  same 
form  as  here  :  but  it  is  interesting  to 
notice  that,  as  with  the  quotation  in 
V.  38,  the  sense  and  purpose  of  the 
quotation  are  different.  In  both  cases 
the  writer  of  this  Epistle  keeps  more 
nearly  to  the  original  intention  of 
the  words.  St  Paul  quotes  them  as 
a  reason  why  we  should  not  revenge 
ourselves :  here,  as  in  the  original, 
the  stress  is  on  the  positive  statement 
that  God  will  avenge. 

the  Lord  shall  judge  his  people. 
This  comes  from  the  next  verse  in 


Deut.  (xxxii.  36).  What  it  adds  is 
that  the  special  privilege  carries 
with  it  the  corresponding  responsi- 
bility ;  as  Amos  put  it  (iii.  2),  "  You 
only  have  I  known  of  all  the  families 
of  the  earth;  therefore  I  will  visit 
upon  you  all  your  iniquities." 

31.  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the 
living  God.  David  uses  the  phrase 
2  Sam.  xxiv.  14,  "Let  us  now  fall 
into  the  hand  of  the  Lord... not  into 
the  hand  of  man,"  where  the  figure 
of  the  first  clause  is  ruled  by  that  of 
the  second.  That  God's  "  vengeance  " 
and  "judgement"  are  to  be  preferred 
in  any  case  to  those  of  one  less  just 
and  merciful  is  the  point  there,  but  is 
not  in  view  here.  Notice  that  "  fear- 
ful" is  repeated  from  v.  26.  The 
writer  is  justifying  here  his  use  of 
the  adjective  in  that  place. 

the  living  God.  See  note  on  ch.  ix. 
1 4.  The  epithet  here  speaks  of  God's 
power,  of  the  impossibility  of  eluding 
or  escaping  Him. 


X.  32-39.    Their  former  steadfastness. 

32  But  call  to  remembrance  the  former  days,  in  which,  after 
ye  were  enlightened,  ye  endured  a  great  conflict  of  suifer- 

33  ings  ;  partly,  being  made  a  gazingstock  both  by  reproaches 
and  afflictions  ;  and  partly,  becoming  partakers  with  them 

34  that  were  so  used.  For  ye  both  had  compassion  on  them 
that  were  in  bonds,  and  took  joyfully  the  spoiling  of  your 
possessions,  knowing  ^that  -ye  yourselves  have  a  better 

35  possession  and  an  abiding  one.  Cast  not  away  therefore 
your  boldness,  which  hath  great  recompense  of  reward. 

36  For  ye  have  need  of  patience,  that,  having  done  the  will  of 
God,  ye  may  receive  the  promise. 

37  For  yet  a  very  little  while. 

He  that  cometh  shall  come,  and  shall  not  tarry. 

38  But  ^my  righteous  one  shall  live  by  faith  : 

And  if  he  shrink  back,  my  soul  hath  no  pleasure  in  him. 


X.  32-39] 


HEBREWS 


89 


39  But  we  are  not  *of  them  that  shrink  back  unto  perdition, 
but  of  them  that  have  faith  unto  the  ^saving  of  the  soul. 

^  Or,  that  ye  hai'e  your  own  selves  for  a  better  possession 

2  Some  ancient  authorities  read  ye  have  for  yourselves  a  better  possession. 

^  Some  ancient  authorities  read  the  righteous  one. 

*  Gr.  of  shrinking  hack. ..but  of  faith.  5  Qj.^  gaining 


General  Note  Ofi  vv.  32-39. 

This  section  relieves  the  sternness  of  the  preceding  paragraph  with 
the  same  instinctive  art  which  dictated  the  change  of  tone  in  ch.  vi.  9. 
We  notice  the  similarity  of  the  topics  in  the  two  places,  both  in  praise  and 
in  exhortation.  What  is  asked  for  is  boldness,  continued  patience,  faith. 
What  is  praised  is  kindness  and  sympathy. 


32.  enlightened.  See  on  ch.  vi.  4. 

33.  a  gazingstock;  a  "spectacle," 
the  figure  being  taken  from  the 
spectacles  of  the  arena :  cp.  1  Cor.  iv. 
9.  It  is  completed  here  by  the  word 
"conflict,"  which  in  the  original 
means  a  combat  of  athletes. 

becoming  partakers,  by  avowing 
sympathy,  and  sharing  their  risks 
and  losses.  It  is  pointed  out  that 
the  participle  here  is  in  a  tense  (the 
aorist)  which  expresses  a  single  past 
experience  and  refers  therefore  to 
some  particular  occasion,  while  the 
preceding  one,  "  being  made,  &c.,"  is 
in  the  present  tense,  describing  their 
continuous  position. 

34.  the77i  that  were  in  bonds.  Cp. 
ch.  xiii.  3.  It  seems  that  at  some 
recent  time  this  commmiity  of  He- 
brew Christians  had  suffered,  and 
was  still  liable  to  suffer  persecution, 
involving  imprisonment  and  the 
"  spoiling  of  goods  "  at  the  hands  of 
their  countrymen  (cp.  Acts  viii.  3,  ix. 
1,  2;  1  Thess.  ii.  14 ;  James ii.  6).  The 
A. v.,  following  the  Received  Text, 
which  here  has  the  support  of  the 
Sinaitic  MS,  has,  in  the  place  of 
"those  that  were  in  bonds"  (8f cr/iioir), 
the  words  "my  bonds"  {Bfa-noU  jjlov). 
It  is  a  case  where  the  theory  held  as 
to  the  authorship  of  the  Epistle  seems 


to  have  influenced  the  text.  It  is 
difficult  to  dissociate  the  variation 
of  reading  from  the  belief  prevalent 
in  the  Eastern  Churches  that  the 
Epistle  proceeded  from  Paul  "the 
prisoner." 

knowing.  It  is  the  verb  which 
means  not  "  to  know,"  but  "  to  per- 
ceive," "  recognize,"  "learn."  It  was 
a  knowledge  that  gi'ew  with  their 
experience. 

ye  yourselms.  As  will  be  seen 
from  the  margin,  neither  reading 
nor  exact  meaning  is  free  from  doubt. 
The  words  in  A. V.,  "  in  heaven,"  are 
an  interpretative  gloss  of  the  trans- 
lator, not  a  part  of  the  true  text: 
but  the  relation  of  the  word  "  your- 
selves "  to  the  sentence  is  uncertain. 
Some  MSS  (as  the  second  marginal 
note  tells  us)  have  the  dative,  "for 
yourselves,"  a  reading  which  avoids 
the  difficulty,  but  which  adds  nothing 
to  the  sense.  R.V.  (text  and  first 
marginal  note)  renders  the  accusa- 
tive. The  rendering  in  the  text, 
"  that  ye  yourselves,"  breaks  a  usual 
rule  of  Greek  grammar  and  the  em- 
phatic pronoun  is  hard  to  explain. 
The  thought  in  the  marginal  render- 
ing, "have  your  own  selves  for  a 
better  possession,"  is  not  as  clearly 
or  simply  expressed  as  we  should  ex- 


90 


HEBREWS 


[x.  32-39 


pect;  but  it  is  possible,  and  is  in 
accordance  with  such  sayings  as 
Luke  xxi.  19,  R.V.,  "  In  your  patience 
ye  shall  win  your  souls,"  and  id.  ix. 
25,  R.V.,  "  What  is  a  man  profited  if 
he  gain  the  whole  world  and  lose  or 
forfeit  his  own  self  ?"  Vaughan  sug- 
gests also  that  there  is  a  connexion 
of  thought  between  the  expression 
here  and  v.  39,  "unto  the  gaining 
(marg.  and  see  note)  of  the  soul." 

35.  Cast  not  away.  Westcott 
compares  Mark  x.  50  (the  only 
other  place  in  N.T.  where  the  verb 
occurs),  "he  casting  away  his  gar- 
ments sprang  up,"  of  an  impulsive 
act :  as  if  it  were  "  do  not  hastily 
fling  away." 

boldness.  See  on  ch.  iii.  6.  The 
meaning  of  "outspokenness"  is  more 
prominent  here.  It  is  of  the  cour- 
ageous avowal  of  sympathy  and  be- 
lief before  God  and  man. 

which  hath;  more  fully,  "seeing 
that  it  has." 

recompense  of  reward:  perh.  in 
reference  to  such  sayings  of  Matt.  xix. 
29.  See  also  ch.  xi.  26,  where  "  the 
recompense  of  reward  "  looks  like  a 
definite  recalling  of  the  phrase  as 
used  here. 

36.  receive  the  promise.  See  on 
ch.  XL  39. 

37.  yet  a  very  little  while.  These 
words  do  not  form  part  of  the  pro- 
phecy of  Habakkuk  which  follows; 
but  they  are  found  in  Isaiah  (exactly 
in  xxvi.  20  and  partially  in  xxix.  17). 
They  are  recalled  as  a  prophetic 
formula,  used  in  such  exhortations  to 
patience — "yet  a  very  little  while, 
and  the  position  which  Habakkuk 
described  will  be  realized." 

37,  38.  The  quotation  is  from 
Habakkuk  ii.  3,  4,  and  follows  almost 
verbally  the  LXX,  with  the  excep- 
tion that  the  two  clauses  of  v.  4  are 
inverted  in  order.    It  wiU  be  noticed, 


if  the  quotation  is  compared  with 
the  passage  in  Habakkuk  (R.  V.),  that 
the  LXX  differs  from  the  Hebrew 
text  in  two  points  :  (1)  It  has  made 
the  subject  of  "  shall  come  "  personal, 
"he  that  cometh,"  where  the  Heb. 
makes  it  "  the  vision."  This  has  no 
serious  effect  on  the  meaning;  for 
the  vision  is  the  vision  of  rescue,  and 
"he  that  cometh"  is  the  Rescuer. 
(2)  For  the  words  rendered  "his 
soul  that  is  lifted  up  is  not  upright 
in  him,"  the  LXX  substituted,  on 
grounds  not  known  to  us,  "if  he 
shrink  back  my  soul  has  no  pleasure 
in  him."  This  alteration,  by  making 
the  two  clauses  refer  not  to  the  in- 
vaders and  defenders  (severally)  of 
Zion,  but  to  two  classes  among  the 
defenders,  made  the  prophet's  call 
appropriate  on  both  sides  to  the 
present  veriter's  purpose  ;  for  it  sug- 
gested the  second  alternative,  that 
oi flinching.,  as  well  as  the  first,  that 
of  standing  firm,  in  the  faith.  But 
the  quotation,  even  if  it  were  made 
from  the  Hebrew  text,  is  directly  in 
point  and  in  the  very  sense  of  the 
Prophet.  The  trial  of  these  Hebrew 
Christians  was  (that  is  the  argument 
of  the  whole  of  the  following  chapter) 
the  very  trial  which  all  the  heroes 
and  martyrs  of  their  race  had  gone 
through.  He  takes  them  back  to 
the  exhortation  of  Habakkuk  in  the 
moment  of  the  Chaldean  invasion. 
The  Prophet  took  his  stand  as  a 
watcher  on  the  tower  to  see  if  there 
appeared  on  the  horizon  any  glimmer 
of  reassurance.  And  the  answer  was 
that  help  was  to  come,  but  not  yet. 
Patience  and  faith  were  what  men 
must  live  by :  the  vision  was  for  an 
appointed  time :  though  it  tarried, 
they  must  wait  for  it.  The  Hebrew 
Christians,  the  writer  tells  them, 
must  do  as  their  forefathers  had 
been  bidden  to  do,  rest  their  souls. 


X  32-39]  HEBREWS  91 

in  spite  of  visible  discouragements,  is   rendered   "  obtaining."    Though 

on  the  invisible.  the   word  is  a  different   one,    the 

39.     unto  perdition,  i.e.  with  per-  thought  is  here  exactly  the  same 

dition  (ruin)  as  the  result.  as    in    our   Lord's   saying,   already 

saeing     (marg.     gaining).      The  quoted,  in  Luke  xxi.  ly,  R.V.,  "in 

Greek   word   admits   either    sense.  your  patience    ye    shall   win   your 

It  is  used   in    1    Thess.   v.   9  and  soiils."    See  also  above  on  v.  34. 
2  Thess.  ii.  14,  and  in  both  places 

Additional  Note  on  the  quotation  from  Hahakkuk  (X.  27,  28). 

The  quotation,  or  rather  the  sentence  which  is  its  core,  has  been  used  in 
the  argiinieut  for  the  Pauline  authorship  of  the  Epistle  :  but  its  bearing  has 
not  always  been  fairly  estimated.  We  must  take  into  account  not  only  the 
fact  of  quotation  but  the  manner  and  purpose.  It  is  beyond  dispute  that 
the  words  of  Habakkuk,  "  the  just  shall  live  by  [his]  faith,"  which  are  as 
a  text  to  St  Paul  in  setting  forth  to  the  Romans  (Rom.  i.  17)  and  to  the 
Galatians  (Gal.  iii.  11)  the  doctrine  of  righteousness  by  faith,  are  quoted 
here  as  leading  to  a  passage  not  only  on  the  subject  of  faith,  but  in 
which  faith  will  be  markedly  associated  with  righteousness.  If  however 
this  fact  is  to  be  used  to  establish  a  connexion  between  St  Paul 
and  this  Epistle,  it  harmonizes  best  not  with  the  theory  of  direct  PauUne 
authorship  but  Avith  the  suggestion  made  by  Origen  that  the  Epistle  was 
written  by  one  of  St  Paul's  circle,  conveying  his  thoughts,  but  at  second- 
hand. The  words  were  evidently  a  watchword  of  St  Paul's  teaching.  They 
would  be  familiar  to  any  one  who  read  his  writings  or  associated  with 
him.  But  it  is  equally  evident  that  they  are  used  in  this  Epistle  in  a 
wholly  different  way  from  that  in  which  he  used  them.  To  him  they 
are  without  context — words  from  a  sacred  source  which  he  adopts  as 
putting  in  an  epigrammatic  form  a  relation  which  has  established  itself  to 
him  on  other  grounds.  The  writer  of  this  Epistle  recalls  them  in  their 
context  and  because  of  it,  and  they  are  used  in  the  exact  sense  which 
the  Prophet  himself  put  upon  them.  To  St  Paul  the  attraction,  so  to  say, 
of  the  Prophet's  words  is  that  they  bring  together  the  two  ideas  of  "  faith  " 
and  "righteousness."  The  righteousness,  as  he  interprets  them,  is  based 
upon  the  faith.  In  the  present  Epistle  we  are  thinking  not  of  the  source  of 
righteousness,  but  of  the  source  of  life.  "  The  just  (or,  My  righteous  one) 
shall  live  by  faith."  We  are  contrasting  his  case,  not  as  St  Paul  would,  with 
that  of  one  who  should  base  his  righteousness  on  works,  but  with  that  of  one 
who  should  flinch  in  the  time  of  trial  for  lack  of  patience  and  faith.  The 
whole  point  of  view  is  changed.  I  have  noticed  above,  on  v.  30  of  this 
chapter,  a  similar  instance  of  the  same  quotation  being  made  by  the  two 
writers  with  an  entirely  different  intention.  Such  a  combination  of  similarity 
and  difference  is  an  argument,  as  far  as  it  goes,  for  diversity,  not  for  identity 
of  authorship. 


92  HEBREWS  [xi.  and  xii.  1-4 

XI.  AND  XII.  1-4.    The  historic  glory  of  Faith. 

Introductory  Note. 

The  idea  of  this  passage  is  one  which  would  appeal  with  special  force  to 
its  first  readers.  It  is  one  of  the  rapid  summaries  of  their  sacred,  heaven- 
ordered  history,  which  was  the  form  into  which,  both  in  Old  and  New 
Testament  times,  a  Jew,  writing  or  speaking  for  his  countrymen,  seemed  to 
throw  naturally  prayer  or  praise,  appeal  or  argument :  not  only  Psalmists 
calling  for  reformation  (Ps.  Ixxviii.)  or  leading  the  voice  of  thanksgiving 
(Pss.  cv.  and  cvi.),  but  Joshua  or  Samuel  (Josh.  xxiv. ;  1  Sam.  xii.)  pleading 
with  the  people,  the  Levites  at  Nehemiah's  fast  (Neh.ix.),  Mattathias  charging 
his  sons  on  his  deathbed  (1  Mace,  ii.),  St  Stephen  before  the  Sanhedrim 
(Acts  vii.),  St  Paul  in  the  synagogue  at  Antioch  (Acts  xiii.).  Cp.  especially 
the  familiar  roll-call  of  "famous  men"  in  Bcclus.  xliv.f. :  diflFerent  though  the 
two  passages  are  in  aim,  there  are  many  points  of  contact  between  them. 
Each  such  catalogue  has  its  special  purpose  and  therefore  its  own  point  of 
view.  The  present  one  is  obviously  much  more  than  a  catalogue :  it  is 
grouped  with  artistic  aim  and  made  at  every  point  to  teach  principles.  It 
begins  with  Faith  as  a  necessary  basis  of  religion.  It  goes  on  to  exhibit  it 
as  the  strength  of  all  high  purpose,  noble  living,  national  progress.  We  are 
to  feel  the  continuity,  the  long,  unbroken  succession :  to  feel  the  great 
variety  in  the  persons  and  occasions, — patriarclis,  judges,  kings,  prophets, 
patriots.  It  has  been  pointed  out  that  the  last-named  instance  is  the  most 
paradoxical,  a  woman,  a  stranger,  an  outcast  (Rahab  the  harlot),  v.  31. 
There  is  the  faith  of  action,  that  "  subdues  kingdoms,  woi-ks  righteousness," 
and  the  faith  of  endurance,  that  waits,  believes,  suffers.  Three,  more  special, 
thoughts  seem  to  colour  the  list : 

(a)  Stress  is  laid'in  many  cases  on  the  way  in  which  faith,  in  accordance 
with  what  is  promised  in  ch.  x.  39,  has  issued  in  the  "  saving  of  the  soul " 
or  the  life.  See  for  instance  v.  5,  Enoch  "  translated  so  that  he  should  not 
see  death"  (it  possibly  accounts  for  the  expression  with  respect  to  Abel, 
"  being  dead  he  yet  speaketh  " — his  faith  even  though  he  died  gave  him  life 
in  another  sense),  Noah  "saving  his  house"  from  the  flood.  A  similar 
thought  can  be  traced  in  vv.  19,  23,  28,  29,  31. 

(&)  The  instances  in  many  cases  suggest  points  of  resemblance  to 
the  actual  call  and  trial  of  the  Hebrew  Christian :  such  as  Noah  seeking 
refuge  from  a  world  going  to  rxiin  around  him  ;  Abi-aham  leaving  kin  and 
home ;  the  Patriarchs  looking  for  the  building  of  a  "  city  of  God." 

(c)  All  in  the  long  succession  are  represented  as  "dying  in  faith,  not 
having  received  the  promises,"  as  only  having  "  seen  and  greeted  them  from 
afar."  It  is  partly  an  example,  to  encourage  the  Christian  Jew  to  have  equal 
patience  and  confidence ;  partly  it  heljjs  the  thought  that  all  that 
faith  of  past  time  is  now  to  be  justified :  the  Christian  is  the  heir  of 
the  ages. 


XI.  AND  XII.  1-4] 


HEBREWS 


93 


The  meaning  of  Faith  (xi.  1,  2). 

XI.     1  Now  faith   is  the  ^assurance  of  things  hoped  for, 
2  the  -proving  of  things  not  seen.     For  therein  the  elders 
had  witness  borne  to  them. 


'  Or,  the  giving  substance  to 

XI.  1.  Now  faith  is^kc.  Not  a  fresh 
beginning  as  though  he  turned  to  a 
new  subject,  but  in  strict  sequence  to 
the  last  words  of  ch.  x.  "  Now  faith, 
of  which  the  prophet  spoke,  the  faith 
in  which  we  (x.  39)  claim  a  portion 
is,  &c." 

This  verse  is  often  called  a  "defini- 
tion "  of  faith.  It  is  not  that.  What 
faith  is,  is  taken  for  granted,  or  is 
to  be  gathered  from  the  instances  to 
be  given  of  it.  The  purpose  of  the 
sentence  is  not  to  give  a  logical  de- 
finition nor  a  complete  description, 
but  to  fix  attention  upon  one 
necessary  characteristic  of  faith. 
The  emphasis  in  each  clause  is  (as 
the  order  of  the  words  in  the  Greek 
plainly  marks)  on  what  are,  in  the 
English,  the  last  words,  viz.  "things 
hoped  for,"  "things  not  seen."  "This 
(the  writer  is  saying)  is  always  the 
character,  the  very  meaning  of  faith. 
It  is  not  faith  unless  it  is  so.  It  is 
faith  that  the  prophet  spoke  of  It 
is  faith  that  you  need — the  great 
grace  of  the  long  heroic  line  of  your 
ancestors.  Remember  in  each  case 
what  faith  carried  with  it.  You 
complain  that  you  are  asked  to  go 
beyond  what  you  can  see,  to  wait,  to 
be  patient,  to  leave  visible  and  tan- 
gible supports  of  religion  on  which  you 
have  been  accustomed  to  lean,  and 
take  instead  what  seem  to  you  visions, 
ideas,  unrealized  promises.  See  then 
that  this  is  just  what  every  one  whose 
name  you  reverence,  in  your  own 
great  history,  has  done.     Faith  oflFers 


2  Or,  test 

assurance,  but  it  is  the  assurance  of 
hope,  not  of  possession :  it  ofi"ers 
evidence,  but  it  is  not  the  evidence 
of  the  senses,  it  is  the  evidence  of 
things  not  seen." 

assurance.  It  is  the  same  Greek 
word  as  that  translated  (in  ch.  iii.  14, 
where  see  note)  "  confidence." 

hoped  for. .  .not  seen.  The  second 
designation  covers  the  first ;  for 
hope  and  sight  are  proverbially 
contradictories  ("hope  that  is  seen 
is  not  hope,"  Rom.  viii.  24),  but  it 
goes  further ;  for  "  hope "  is  of  the 
future ;  "  not  seen  "  includes  things 
present  and  past,  and  so  prepares  us 
for  V.  3,  and  takes  in  the  spiritual 
world  generally. 

2.  For  therein  the  elders ;  rather 
"For  it  is  therein  that  the  elders," 
&c.  "  Therein  "  is  emphatic.  "  It  is 
faith  in  this  sense,  faith  that  involves 
a  venture  on  the  unseen,  that  has 
made  your  history  so  memorable." 
This  truth  is  meant  to  be  recognized 
in  all  the  instances  given,  though  it 
is  brought  out  more  evidently  in 
some.  Noah  did  not  wait  to  see  the 
rising  flood  before  he  built  the  ark. 
Abraham  followed  the  Voice  which 
called  him  without  seeing  whither  it 
led.  He  acted  on  a  promise,  when 
its  fulfilment  seemed  imjwssible,  and 
so  on.  Notice  also  that  throughout 
the  writer  is  urging  not  merely 
that  such  faith  is  something  that  we 
honour,  but  that  it  is  something  that 
met  with  a  response — something  to 
the  greatness  of  which  the  Scripture 


94  HEBREWS  [xi.  Am)  xii.  1-4 

"  bore  witness "  (see,  for  instance,  of   past    generations,    but    with    a 

in  vv.  4  and  5  and  compare  note  on  sense  of  honour,  the  great  men  of 

V.  16).  tlie  past.    The  nearest  use  is  that  in 

elders,  a   parallel   expression   to  Matt.  xv.  2,  "the  tradition  of  the 

"the  fathers"  in  ch.  i.  1,  the  men  elders." 


Faith  as  the  foundation  of  religion  (3-6). 

3  By  faith  we  understand  that  the  ^worlds  have  been  framed 
by  the  word  of  God,  so  that  what  is  seen  hath  not  been 

4  made  out  of  things  which  do  appear.  By  faith  Abel  oflered 
unto  God  a  more  excellent  sacrifice  than  Cain,  through 
which  he  had  witness  borne  to  him  that  he  was  righteous, 
^God  bearing  witness  ^in  respect  of  his  gifts  :  and  through 

5  it  he  being  dead  yet  speaketh.  By  faith  Enoch  was  trans- 
lated that  he  should  not  see  death,  and  he  was  not  found, 
because  God  translated  him  :  for  before  his  translation  he 
hath  had  witness  borne  to  him  that  he  had  been  well- 

6  pleasing  unto  God :  and  without  faith  it  is  impossible  to 
be  well -pleasing  unto  him :  for  he  that  cometh  to  God  must 
believe  that  he  is,  and  that  he  is  a  rewarder  of  them  that 
seek  after  him. 

^  Gr.  ages. 

*  The  Greek  text  in  this  clause  is  somewhat  uncertain. 

'  Or,  over  his  gifts 

General  Note  on  XI.  3-6. 

The  general  purpose  of  the  chapter,  as  has  been  said,  is  to  shew  what  has 
been  the  vivifying  faculty  from  end  to  end  of  the  sacred  history,  from  Genesis 
to  Maccabees.  But  there  is  another  point  gained  in  the  first  three  instances. 
In  a  sense  they  touch  the  case  of  the  Hebrew  Christians  even  more  closely 
than  those  which  illustrate  Faith  as  the  spring  of  heroic  deeds.  Their 
special  trial  was  to  find  that  they  had  to  make  a  new  and  uncalculated 
departure  in  religion.  These  instances  take  them  back  to  the  earliest 
ages  to  illustrate  three  fundamental  ideas  of  religion,  and  to  ask  what 
they  were  but  the  gi-eatest  ventures  of  Faith : — a  Creator — that  is  the 
first  postulate  of  religion ;  yet  what  gi-eater  venture  on  the  unseen  can 
there  be  than  is  demanded  by  that  thought  ?  And  so  with  the  two  natm*al 
and  necessary  modes  in  which  religion  expresses  itself — the  sacrifice  of  Abel 
— the  piety  of  Enoch  :  worship  and  himible  walking  with  God.  They  in- 
volved not  only  the  belief  that  an  Unseen  Creator  existed,  but  that  men 
could  enter  into  relations  with  Him,  could  give  Him  what  He  valued,  could 
please  Him  by  doing  well. 


XL  AND  XII.  1-4] 


HEBREWS 


95 


3.  understand.  It  is  the  same 
word  which  in  Rom.  i.  20  (a  complete 
parallel  in  thought  to  this  verse) 
is  rendered  (R.V.)  by  "perceive." 
In  both  places  it  is  of  a  mental 
process  and  is  definitely  opposed  to 
sight. 

worlds  (marg.  ages).  See  on  ch.  i.  2. 
have  been  framed  ("fitted  per- 
fectly" ;  see  note  on  xiii.  21).  The 
perfect  tense  in  Greek  implies  that 
the  framing  is  not  merely  an  act  in 
the  past  but  that  its  efl'ects  endure 
to  the  present. 

by  the  word  of  God.  See  on  ch.  i. 
3,  "the  word  of  his  power."  The 
special  reference  is  to  the  formula 
of  Gen.  i.,  "  God  said,"  of  the  Divine 
fiat. 

so  that:  this  clause  sums  up  the 
principle  involved  in  the  belief  in 
a  Creator,  viz.  that  behind  what  is 
seen  there  is  necessarily  something 
that  is  not  seen. 

4.  "It  was  faith  which  made 
Abel's  sacrifice  more  acceptable  than 
Cain's,  and  gained  him  the  testimony 
that  he  was  righteous."  This  is  an 
interpretation  of  the  story  in  Genesis, 
which  only  states  that  God  "  had  re- 
spect unto"  Abel's  ofi"ering  and  not 
to  Cain's :  but  it  is  in  the  light  ap- 
parently of  a  tradition  that  Abel  had 
received  the  title  of  "  righteous."  It 
seems  in  Matt,  xxiii.  35  ("the  blood 
of  righteous  Abel ")  to  be  given  as  a 
matter  of  usage  ;  and  cp.  1  John  iii. 
12.  The  word  rendered  "better"  is 
literally  "larger,"  "fuller,"  and  it  has 
been  intei-preted  to  refer  to  the 
statement  that  Abel  ofl'ered  of  his 
flock,  Cain  of  the  fruits  of  the 
ground.  But  this  is  to  read  things 
into  the  story.  On  the  face  of  it, 
each  is  represented  as  off'ering  of  his 
own,  Abel  the  shepherd,  Cain  the 
husbandman.  Our  thoughts  are  con- 
centrated on  the  moral  diflference. 


"Larger"  must  be  taken  therefore 
in  a  moral,  not  in  a  material  sense  : 
"  a  sacrifice  of  more  value." 

through  ichich,  i.e.  faith  ;  just  as 
"through  it"  in  the  next  clause 
means  through  his  faith ;  cp.  also 
V.  7. 

had  witness  borne  to  him,  in  the 
story,  by  the  acceptance  of  his  offer- 
ing, and  by  God's  concernment  with 
the  wrong  done  to  him  by  Cain. 

God  bearing  witness.  The  mar- 
ginal note  calls  attention  to  the  fact 
that  there  is  some  question  as  to  the 
text.  Of  the  three  oldest  MSS,  the 
Vatican  is  defective  in  this  Epistle 
after  ch.  ix.  14,  and  the  other  two 
have  here  "God"  in  the  dative  case, 
so  that  it  would  mean  "while  he  him- 
self bears  witness  to  God  in  respect 
of  his  gifts."  It  should  be  said  that 
the  text  is  quoted  as  we  have  it  by 
Clement  of  Alexandria. 

being  dead  yet  speaketh;  i.e.  by 
the  example  of  his  faith  and  its  re- 
ward, though  they  caused  his  death, 
he  still  has  a  voice  to  exhort  and 
encourage.  The  difficult  expression 
seems  to  be  suggested  (1)  by  the 
words  of  Gen.  iv.  10,  "the  voice  of 
thy  brother's  blood  crieth  unto  me 
from  the  gi-ound,"  which  are  recalled 
again  in  this  Epistle  in  ch.  xii.  24 ; 
notice  that  the  word  "speaketh" 
is  repeated  there  of  the  Blood  :  see 
also  note  on  id.  25  :  (2)  by  the  fiict 
that  Abel  is  treated  as  the  first 
Martyr.     Cp.  Matt,  xxiii.  35. 

5.  By  faith  Enoch  inas  trans- 
lated: "It  was  by  faith  that  Enoch 
was  translated ;  for  look  at  the  re- 
cord in  Gen.  v.  24  (they  are  the  actual 
words  of  the  LXX),  'he  was  not 
found,  for  God  translated  him,'  but 
before  that  (in  r.  22  and  in  the  first 
half  of  24)  we  have  read  '  Enoch  was 
well-pleasing  to  God,'  and  this  neces- 
sarily implies  that  he  had  faith  in 


96  HEBREWS  [xi.  and  xii.  1-4 

God's  existence  and  in  His  care  for  writer  in  xlix.  14  has  "Enoch... was 

goodness."    The  words   "was  well-  taken  up  from  the  earth."    Cp.  Wis- 

pleasing  to  God "  are  the  LXX  para-  dom  iv.    10,   "while   living  among 

phrase  of  the  Hebrew  "  walked  with  sinners  he  was  translated  ;  he  was 

God."    It  should  be  noticed  that  in  caught  away,  &c."    This  evidently 

the  following  words,  "that  he  should  refers  to  Enoch,  though  it  does  not 

not  see  death,"  the  writer  is  ap-  name  him ;  and  it  is  doubtful  whether 

parently  adopting  a  traditional  in-  it  necessarily  implies  anything  be- 

terpretation  of  the  words  as  they  yond  a  premature  death ;  cp.   the 

stand  in  Genesis,  "he  was  not,  for  wording  of  Isaiah  Ivii.  1. 
God  took  him."    The  word  "trans-  hath  had  icitness  borne,  i.e.  in  the 

lated"  {nfTfTedrj)  is  used  of  Enoch  preceding    words    of    the    passage 

first  in  Ecclus.  xliv.  16.     The  same  which  speaks  of  his  translation. 


Faith  in  God's  threatenings  and  promises  (7-12). 

7  By  faith  Noah,  being  warned  of  God  concerning  things  not 
seen  as  yet,  moved  with  godly  fear,  prepared  an  ark  to  the 
saving  of  his  house  ;  through  which  he  condemned  the 
world,  and  became  heir  of  righteousness  which  is  according 

8  to  faith.  By  faith  Abraham,  when  he  was  called,  obeyed 
to  go  out  unto  a  place  which  he  was  to  receive  for  an  in- 
heritance ;  and  he  went  out,  not  knowing  whither  he  went. 

9  By  faith  he  became  a  sojourner  in  the  land  of  promise,  as 
in  a  land  not  his  own,  ^dwelling  in  tents,  with  Isaac  and 

10  Jacob,  the  heirs  with  him  of  the  same  promise :  for  he 
looked  for  the  city  which  hath  foundations,  whose  ^builder 

1 1  and  maker  is  God.  By  faith  even  Sarah  herself  received 
power  to  conceive  seed  when  she  was  past  age,  since  she 

12  counted  him  faithful  who  had  promised :  wherefore  also 
there  sprang  of  one,  and  him  as  good  as  dead,  as  Tnany  as 
the  stars  of  heaven  in  multitude,  and  as  the  sand,  which  is 
by  the  seashore,  innumerable. 

^  Or,  having  taken  up  his  abode  in  tents  ^  Or,  architect 

7-12.     The  section  is  bound  together  by  the  fact  that  it  gives  instances 
of  faith  as  shevra  by  trust  in  God's  threatenings  and  promises. 

7.     being  warned  \of  God^    See  still,  even  when  he  was  warned  of 

on  ch.  viii.  5.  them,  out  of  sight.     Vaughan  points 

things  not  seen  as  yet ;  more  ex-  out  that  as  v.  3  dealt  with  faith  in 

actly  "the  things  (i.e.  the  coming  respect  of  things  past  and  vv.  4-6 

judgement)  not  even  yet  seen,"  i.e.  with  faith  in  respect  of  the  present, 


XI.  AND  XII.  1-4] 


HEBREWS 


97 


so  V.  7  f.  deals  with  it  in  respect  of 
the  future — Noah  in  respect  of  what 
was  to  be  feared,  Abraham  and 
Sarah  in  respect  of  what  was  to 
be  hoped. 

moved  with  godly  fear.  The  four 
words  represent  a  single  participle 
in  the  Greek,  cognate  to  the  sub- 
stantive used  in  ch.  v.  7  and  xii.  8. 
It  expresses  here  a  "  wise  fear,"  but 
with  suggestion  of  awe,  of  a  sense  of 
the  unseen. 

through  which,  i.e.  (as  in  v.  4) 
"through  which  faith." 

condemned  the  world :  i.e.  by  the 
contrast  of  his  conduct  and  theirs ; 
in  the  sense  of  Matt.  xii.  41,  "the 
men  of  Nineveh  shall  stand  up  in  the 
judgement  with  this  generation  and 
shall  condemn  it."  Possibly  there  is 
reference  to  the  traditional  addition 
that  Noah  preached  to  his  contem- 
poraries ;  2  Pet.  ii.  5,  "  a  preacher  of 
righteousness."  The  same  is  implied 
in  1  Pet.  iii.  20. 

heir  of  righteousness .. .according 
to  faith  ;  i.e.  he  was  one  who  in  his 
generation  carried  on  the  tradition 
of  right-doing  based  upon  and 
crowned  with  faith  in  the  unseen. 
(The  association  of  Noah  with 
"righteousness"  dates  from  the  O.T. 
See  Ezek.  xiv.  14  and  Ecclus.  xliv. 
17.)  This  is  the  exjjression  in  which 
the  writer  comes  nearest  in  appear- 
ance to  Pauline  language ;  and  we 
can  hardly  doubt  that  the  close  con- 
nexion between  faith  and  righteous- 
ness as  set  forth  by  St  Paul  was  in 
some  way  in  the  writer's  conscious- 
ness; but  it  should  be  noted  (1)  that 
the  exact  phrase  for  this  connexion, 
"according  to"  (Kara),  belongs  to 
this  Epistle  (see  on  c.  13)  but  is  not 
found  in  St  Paul's  writings  :  (2)  that 
there  is  no  sign  in  the  case  either 
of  "  faith  "  or  of  "  righteousness  "  of 
the  special  colour  which  St  Paul's 


theology  puts  upon  them.  "  Faith  " 
is,  as  always  in  this  Epistle,  a  sense 
of  the  unseen ;  "righteousness"  is 
right-doing. 

It  is  of  interest,  as  illustrating  the 
freedom  with  which  the  same  phrases 
could  be  used  with  slightly  varying 
points  of  view,  to  compare  Clem. 
Rom.  ad  Cor.  x.  which  follows  closely 
the  passage  in  this  Epistle  with  its 
three  instances  of  Enoch,  Noah,  and 
Abraham,  but  "faith"  has  a  more 
practical  aspect,  being  connected 
more  nearly  with  "  obedience  "  and, 
in  Abraham's  case,  put  side  by  side 
with  his  "hospitality." 

8.  By  faith  Abraham.  Abraham, 
"  the  father  of  all  them  that  believe  " 
(Rom.  iv.  11),  naturally  occupies  a 
large  place  in  the  catalogue  of  the 
triumphs  of  faith.  What  is  said  of 
him  is  in  two  portions :  (1)  in  «^».  8- 
16,  of  his  acceptance  of  the  call  and 
promises,  and  of  the  life  of  unfulfilled 
expectation  to  which  these  led.  In 
this  he  is  associated,  though  the 
primary  part  is  his,  with  Sarah, 
Isaac  and  Jacob.  (2)  in  vv.  17-19, 
of  his  signal  act  of  trust  even  with- 
out a  promise. 

when  fie  was  called;  exactly  "while 
he  was  being  called."  The  tenses  of 
the  participle  and  of  the  verb  respec- 
tively express  the  instantaneousness 
of  his  response  to  the  call. 

9.  became  a  sojourner.,  .dwelling. 
Two  verbs  are  used  which  differ  only 
in  the  preposition  with  which  they 
are  compounded ;  the  first  being 
used  of  temporary,  the  second  of 
permanent  residence.  There  is 
therefore  something  like  a  play  in 
the  use  of  the  words  ;  "  he  made  his 
home  in  tents."  The  shifting  tent 
was  the  nearest  approach  that  he 
found  to  a  home. 

as  in  a  \land'\  not  his  owti.  It  was 
the  land  of  promise ;  but  he  sojourned 


98  HEBREWS  [xi.  and  xii.  1-4 

in  it  as  though  he  had  no  part  or  lot  people    a   "  thought   beyond   their 

in  it.  thought."     As    the    Tabernacle    of 

with  Isaac  andJacob.  The  patient  Moses  is  the  shadow  of  the  "taber- 

waiting  for  the  fulfilment  was  not  for  nacle  not  made  with  hands,"  so  the 

one  generation  only.  polity  of  Abraham's  vision  is  the 

10.     The  reason    of   his    patient  shadow  of  the  city  "  whose  Designer 

waiting — "  he  was  looking  forward  and  Builder  is  God." 
to  the  building  of  the  city  of  God."  11.    even  Sarah  herself.    Faith 

This  assertion  rests  (1)  in  substance,  was  needed  for  the  mother  as  well  as 

on  the  nature  of  the  promises  which  the  father.     No  reference  is  made  to 

he  had  in  mind,  the  "seed  as  the  Sarah's  initial  incredulity, 
stars  of  heaven"  and  "the  blessing         counted   Mm  faithful.    See  ch. 

for  all  nations "  ;  (2)  in /orm,  on  pro-  x.    2.3.       "Faithful"    implies    also 

phetic  sayings  of  the  visible  Jerusa-  "  trustworthy." 
lem  and  of  the  new  Jerusalem  to  be,  12.     wherefore.    It  answers  to  the 

as  Ps.  Ixxxvii.  1,  "His  fomidation  is  "through  which"  of  »».  4  and  7,  and 

intheholy  mountain. .  .glorious things  therefore  =  "  on  account  of  her  faith." 

are  spoken  of  thee,  O  city  of  God,"  Sarah's  faith  met  response, 
and  Isaiah  liv.  12,  "I  will...  lay  thy         \as  many\  as... seashore.  They  are 

foundations    with    sapphires,    &c."  the  words  of  the  promise  in  the  LXX 

But  the  writer  sees  in  the  anticipa-  version  of  Gen.  xxii.  17. 
tions,  as  in  the  institutions,  of  his 


Patience  of  the,  patriarchs  (13-16), 

13  These  all  died  Mn  faith,  not  having  received  the  promises, 
but  having  seen  them,  and  greeted  them  from  afar,  and 
having  confessed  that  they  were  strangers  and  pilgrims  on 

14  the  earth.     For  they  that  say  such  things  make  it  manifest 

15  that  they  are  seeking  after  a  country  of  their  own.  And  if 
indeed  they  had  been  mindful  of  that  country  from  which 
they  went  out,  they  would  have  had  opportunity  to  return. 

16  But  now  they  desire  a  better  country,  that  is  an  heavenly : 
wherefore  God  is  not  ashamed  of  them  to  be  called  their 
God  :  for  he  hath  prepared  for  them  a  city. 

^  Gr.  according  to. 

General  Note  on  w.  13-16. 

A  comparison  with  v.  39,  which  sums  up  the  lesson  of  the  whole 
catalogue,  wiU  shew  that  this  paragi-aph  also  marks  the  end  of  a  stage, 
although  Abraham  figures  again  in  the  second  stage  as  he  has  done  in 
the  first.  It  is  questioned  whether  "These  all"  includes  Abel,  Enoch, 
Noah  or  only  Abraham  and  his  descendants.  There  can  be  no  distinct 
thought  of  the  earUer  names;  for  "died  in  faith"  is  inappropriate  to  the 


XI.  AND  XII.  1-4] 


HEBREWS 


99 


picture  given  of  Enoch,  and  the  words  of  vc.  15  and  16  definitely  refer 
to  Abraham,  Isaac  and  Jacob.  At  the  same  time  it  is,  uo  doubt,  a 
general  characterizing  of  the  faith  of  the  patriarchs,  though  the  special 
terms  suit  the  later  ones  only.  It  was  in  all  a  forward-looking  life,  spent 
for  an  ideal,  and  for  one  not  to  be  realized  in  this  world. 


13.  in  faith.  The  literal  render- 
ing (see  marg.)  is  "according  to 
faith."  Westcott  paraphrases  "in- 
spired, sustained,  guided,  by  faith." 
The  words  must  be  taken  not  so 
much  with  "  died  "  as  with  the  whole 
sentence.  It  was  in  the  spirit  of 
faith  that,  though  they  died  without 
receiving  the  promises,  they  did  not 
die  till  they  had  seen  them  and 
greeted  them  afar.  It  is  difficult  to 
separate  the  picture  altogether  from 
the  words  attributed  to  our  Lord  in 
John  viii.  56,  "  Abraham  rejoiced  to 
see  my  day,  and  he  saw  it  and  was 
glad." 

hacing  see^i  them  and  greeted 
them,  as  sailors  see  land  over  the 
water  and  send  hearts  as  well  as 
eyes  to  it  before  they  reach  it. 

strangers  and  pilgrims.  The 
words  are  meant  to  recall  sayings 
of  Abraham  (Gen.  xxiii.  4)  and  Jacob 
(Gen.  xlvii.  9).  Cp.  Ps.  xxxix.  12 ; 
1  Pet.  ii.  11.  The  argument  is 
^^  Strangers  and  pilgrims  means  in 
a  land  not  their  own  ;  and  there  is 
a  wistful  tone  in  the  words,  which 
means  that  they  are  longing  for  a 
tnie  fatherland.  What  land  is  this  ? 
Not  the  land  from  which  they  came : 
for  they  might  have  gone  back  to  it. 
Not  the  land  in  which  they  are  :  for 
they  desire  a  better.  What  can  it  be 
but  a  heavenly  one?"  Notice  that 
"heavenly"  is  the  epithet  of  the  ideal, 
spiritual,  antitypes  in  ch.  viii.  5,  ix. 
23. 


1 6.  wher^ore.  This  is  the  clause 
which  answers  to  the  "wherefore" 
of  V.  12  and  the  "through  which"  of 
»p.  4  and  7 — on  account  of  this  ex- 
hibition of  faith,  this  power  of  hold- 
ing to  an  ideal  purpose. 

to  he  called  their  God,  i.e.  to 
accept  the  title  so  often  given  to 
Him  in  the  Old  Testament,  "the 
God  of  Abraham,  of  Isaac,  and  of 
Jacob,"  Gen.  xxvi.  24,  xxviii.  13  ; 
Exod.  iii.  6.  Note  that  in  "not 
ashamed  to  be  called  their  God," 
we  have  the  thought  expressed  in 
V.  2  :  they  had  witness  borne  to  them 
that  their  faith  was  recognized. 

hath  prepared ;  better,  as  well 
as  more  exactly,  prepared.  The 
time  intended  is  anterior  to  the  pre- 
viously named  action.  This  clause 
explains  and  justifies  the  preceding 
one.  God  allowed  Himself  to  be 
called  in  all  time  their  God,  for  their 
confidence  was  not  misplaced ;  He 
had  made  ready  for  them  the  city  of 
which  they  dreamed.  It  is  in  effect 
the  same  argument  as  that  based  by 
our  Lord  Himself  (Matt.  xxii.  32)  on 
this  Divine  title :  "God  is  not  the 
God  of  the  dead  but  of  the  living." 

a  city :  v.  10  and  ch.  xii.  22,  xiii. 
14.  Not  only  a  country  of  their  own 
{r>.  14)  but  (a  higher  and  fuller  con- 
ception) a  settled  and  organized 
community,  a  "city  of  God" — i.e. 
in  the  first  place  the  polity  of  Israel, 
but  in  the  true  perfection,  the  polity 
of  redeemed  humanity. 


7—2 


100  HEBREWS  [xi.  and  xii.  1-4 

Faith  that  faces  sacrifice  (17-19). 

17  By  faith  Abraham,  being  tried,  ^offered  up  Isaac :  yea,  he 
that  had  gladly  received  the  promises  was  offering  up  his 

18  only  begotten  son  :  even  he  ^to  whom  it  was  said.  In  Isaac 

19  shall  thy  seed  be  called :  accounting  that  God  is  able  to 
raise  up,  even  from  the  dead  ;  from  whence  he  did  also  in 
a  parable  receive  him  back. 

1  Gr.  liath  offered  up.  ^  Or,  of 

General  Note  on  vr>.  17-19. 

The  second  proof  of  Abraham's  faith — not  now  in  accepting  and  acting 
upon  the  promises  but  in  facing  a  call,  as  it  seemed,  to  surrender  what 
appeared  to  be  the  tangible  pledge  of  the  promise.  There  is,  no  doubt, 
a  sense  in  the  backgi-ouud  that  there  was  an  analogy  between  this  and 
the  trial  of  the  present  generation  of  Jewish  Christians,  who  were  called 
to  part  with  so  much  which  they  had  thought  vital  to  God's  promises 
to  them. 

It  may  be  noticed  that  in  the  argument  on  the  faith  of  Abraham 
St  Paul,  confining  himself  to  the  exhibition  and  acceptance  of  his  faith 
"while  he  was  still  in  uncircumcision,"  does  not  give  as  an  instance  his 
readiness  to  sacrifice  the  son  of  promise  :  but  there  is  some  reason  to  think 
that  the  passage  (Rom.  iv.  10-20)  may  have  been  present  to  our  writer. 
See  below,  note  on  v.  29. 

17.  offered  up.  As  the  marginal  In  Isaac.  The  quotation  is  from 
note  reminds  us  it  is  a  perfect  tense.  Gen.  xxi.  12.  The  race  which  was  to 
"  hath  offered  up."  It  is  the  tense  bear  his  name  should  be  his  descend- 
of  events  which  stand  recorded  in  ants  through  Isaac,  not  Ishmael.  It 
Scripture.  See  on  ch.  vii.  6,  "hath  is  another  instance  of  a  quotation 
taken."  On  the  other  hand  the  im-  common  to  this  Epistle  and  St  Paul, 
perfect  tense  in  the  next  clause  "  was  but  made  with  entirely  difi"erent 
oflFering "  (i.e.  "was  ready  to  offer"),  purposes:  Rom.  ix.  7. 

belongs  to  the  storj'.     The  offering  19.     God..J'rvm    the    dead.      A 

was  made  in  will  but  not  in  deed.  venture,  surely  (he  would  say),  on 

18.  \ecen  he^  to  whom.  The  Greek,  the  unseen.  The  words  seem,  though 
as  the  italics  aud  the  marginal  note  they  apply  to  a  different  occasion 
indicate,  admits  equally  of  the  ren-  (see  above,  general  note  on  17-19), 
dering  "even  him  to  whom,"  i.e.  to  be  an  echo  of  St  Paul's  words 
Isaac.  Either  is  possible ;  but  there  (Rom.  iv.  17),  "him  whom  he  be- 
is  more  force  in  the  rendering  in  the  lieved,  even  God,  who  quickeneth 
text.  The  point  which  the  writer  is  the  dead  and  calleth  the  things  that 
emphasizing  is  the  full  consciousness  are  not  as  though  they  were." 

of  the  surrender.  Abraham  was  whence  he  did  also  in  a  parable. 
called  not  only  to  bear  loss  but  with  "In  a  parable"  =  "in  a  figure."  It  was 
his  own  hands  to  bring  it  about.  an  acted  parable.     He  had  faith  to 


XL  AND  XII.  1-4] 


HEBREWS 


101 


believe  that  if  the  boy  were  dead 
God  could  give  him  back — and  so 
also  it  was  from  the  dead,  as  it  were, 
that  he  actually  received  him  back. 


Westcott  takes  it  less  probably  of 
his  original  birth  from  one  "  as  good 
as  dead,"  v.  12. 


Faith  that  looks  to  the  future  (20-22). 

20  By  faith  Isaac  blessed  Jacob  and  Esau,  even  concerning 

21  things  to  come.  By  faith  Jacob,  when  he  was  a  dying,  blessed 
each  of  the  sons  of  Joseph  :  and  worshipped  leaning  upon 

22  the  top  of  his  staff.  By  faith  Joseph,  when  his  end  was 
nigh,  made  mention  of  the  departure  of  the  children  of 
Israel ;  and  gave  commandment  concerning  his  bones. 

.  General  Note  on  vv.  20-22. 

These  instances  span  the  interval  between  Abraham  and  the  Exodus, 
between  the  Promise  and  the  first  steps  towards  its  fulfilment.  All  turns  on 
the  steady  looking  forward  in  spite  of  delay  aud  discouragement. 


20.  tlessed  Jacob  and  Esau.  The 
words  are  meant  to  recall  the  circum- 
stances as  well  as  the  fact  of  the 
blessing.  Faith  was  shewn  in  the 
importance  attached  to  the  birth- 
right at  a  time  when  the  inheritance 
was  in  the  clouds — perhaps  also 
shewn  in  the  acquiescence  in  God's 
will  that  the  father's  purpose  should 
be  frustrated  and  the  younger  pre- 
ferred to  the  elder. 

21.  The  expression  combines, 
consciously  or  unconsciously,  a  re- 
ference to  the  two  distinct  stories  of 
Gen.  xlviii.  and  xlvii.  29  foil.  The 
earlier  words  describe  Jacob's  bless- 
ing of  Ephraim  and  Manasseh  in 
Gen.  xlviii.,  when  he  put  his  right 
hand  on  the  head  of  the  younger: 
but  the  later  words,  "he  worshipped, 
&c.,"  come  myhatim  from  the  LXX 
in  Gen.  xlvii.  31,  where  they  close 
the  story  of  his  charge  to  Joseph  not 
to  bury  him  in  Egypt,  but  to  carry 
liim  to  the  cave  of  Machpelah.  It  is 
hard  not  to  think  that  the  writer  is 
meaning  to  refer  to  this  and  to  point 
out  that  Jacob,  as  well  as  Joseph 
after  him,  shewed  in  his  last  request 


how  firmly  he  rested  on  the  promise 
that  Abraham's  seed  should  possess 
the  Holy  Land. 

on  the  top  of  his  staff;  i.e.  prop- 
ping himself  on  his  staff  and  bending 
over  it — the  LXX  reading  where  the 
Hebrew  has,  as  in  our  versions,  "up- 
on the  bed's  head."  Cp.  the  descrip- 
tion of  David,  when  bedridden, 
praying :  1  Kings  i.  47,  "  the  king 
bowed  himself  upon  his  bed." 

22.  The  reference  is  to  Gen.  1. 
There  are  two  jwints  corresponding 
severally  to  vv.  24  and  25  of  that 
chapter:  (1)  He  "made  mention  of 
(the  word  possibly  only  means  "he 
had  in  mind")  the  departure  (the 
word  used  is  the  Exodus)  of  the 
children  of  Israel  (possibly  rather, 
the  sons  of  Israel,  i.e.  of  Jacob,  his 
brothers)."  They  were  thinking  of 
their  arrival  in  Egypt  and  their 
gathering  interests  there.  His 
thoughts  were  in  the  land  of  pro- 
mise, to  which  they  or  their  children 
were  surely  to  come.  (2)  He  asso- 
ciated himself  with  their  future  and 
wished  his  bones  to  lie  in  the  Holy 
Land. 


102  HEBREWS  [xi.  and  xii.  1-4 


Faith  in  history  of  Moses  and  the  Exodus  (23-31). 

23  By  faith  Moses,  when  he  was  bom,  was  hid  three  months  by 
his  parents,  because  they  saw  he  was  a  goodly  child  ;  and 

24  they  were  not  afraid  of  the  king's  commandment.     By  faith 
Moses,  when  he  was  grown  up,  refused  to  be  called  the  son 

25  of  Pharaoh's  daughter ;  choosing  rather  to  be  evil  entreated 
with  the  people  of  God,  than  to  enjoy  the  pleasures  of  sin 

26  for  a  season  ;   accounting  the  reproach  of  ^Christ  greater 
riches  than  the  treasures  of  Egypt :  for  he  looked  unto  the 

27  recompense  of  reward.     By  faith  he  forsook  Egypt,  not 
fearing  the  wrath  of  the  king :  for  he  endured,  as  seeing 

28  him  who  is  invisible.     By  faith  he  "^kept  the  passover,  and 
the  sprinkling  of  the  blood,  that  the  destroyer  of  the  first- 

29  born  should  not  touch  them.     By  faith  they  passed  through 
the  Red  Sea  as  by  dry  land  :  which  the  Egyptians  assaying 

30  to  do  were  swallowed  up.     By  faith  the  walls  of  Jericho  fell 
down,  after  they  had  been  compassed  about  for  seven  days. 

31  By  faith  Rahab  the  harlot  perished  not  with  them  that  were 
disobedient,  having  received  the  spies  with  peace. 

^  Or,  the  Christ  ^  Or,  instituted     Gr.  hath  made. 

General  Note  on  vv.  23-31. 

We  pass  to  another  epoch,  that  of  the  Exodus  ;  and  to  another  class  of 
calls  upon  Faith ;  no  longer  for  patience  and  maintenance  of  the  hope, 
now  for  active  resistance,  choice,  enterprise. 

As  Abraham  before,  so  now  naturally  Moses  has  the  central  and  largest 
place,  the  other  instances  admitted  being,  as  in  the  former  case,  contribuent 
and  complementary  to  those  which  directly  concern  himself.  The  hortatory 
purpose  of  the  recital  is  kept  before  us  in  the  choice  of  phrases  as  well  as 
incidents :  "  not  afraid,"  "  not  fearing,"  "  evil  entreated  with  the  people  of 
God,"  "the  reproach  of  Christ." 

23.     The  name  of  Moses  occupies  It  is  a  word  of  colloquial  Greek),  and 

the  prominent  place  in  the  verse :  it  in  attributing  the  concealment  to 

is  an  instance  which  belongs  to  his  both  parents.     In  the  Hebrew  text 

story  and  fitly  begins  it ;  but  the  faith  the  mother  only  is  credited  with  it. 

is  that  of  his  parents.     The  writer  24.     when    he    was   grown    up. 

follows  closely  the  story  as  it  stands  Here  again  the  Greek  phrase  used  is 

in  the  LXX  (Exod.  ii.  2),  e.g.  in  the  that  of  the  LXX  (Exod.  ii.  11).   That 

word  translated  "goodly"  (cp.  Acts  Moses  refused  an   actual   oflfer   of 

vii.  20,  where  it  is  rendered  "fair."  adoption  is  not  explicitly  stated  in 


XI.  AND  XII.  1-4] 


HEBREWS 


103 


the  text  of  Exodus,  though  it  is  a 
natural  inference  and  became  part 
of  the  tradition. 

25.  pleasures  of  «z«  =  the  plea- 
sures to  be  had  at  the  price  of  apos- 
tasy. For  this  special  meaning  of 
"  sin  "  see  on  ch.  x.  26,  27. 

26.  accounting:  the  participle 
probably  (as  Westcott  takes  it)  in 
the  sense  of  "because  he  accounted." 

the  reproach  of  Christ  (cp.  ch.  xiii. 
13,  "bearing  his  reproach,"  i.e.  the 
reproach  that  fell  upon  Him).  An 
unexpected  use  in  relation  to  Moses 
of  a  phrase  natural  in  relation  to 
Christians.  It  is  a  synonym  or  ex- 
pansion of  the  words  in  v.  25,  "to  be 
evil  entreated  with  the  people  of 
God " :  the  reproach  (that  is,  the 
contempt  and  evil  speaking)  which, 
then,  as  in  all  time  and  as  most 
especially  in  the  Gospel  story,  has 
been  the  portion  of  God's  "anointed." 
The  language  is  the  language  of  the 
Psalms :  see  especially  Ps.  Ixix.  7,  9 
(quoted  by  St  Paul  in  Rom.  xv.  3  as 
Messianic)  and  Ixxxix.  50,  51,  "the 
reproach  of  thy  servants. .  .wherewith 
they  [the  enemies]  have  reproached 
the  footsteps  of  thine  Anointed  (Gr. 
thy  Christ)."  A  special  purpose  here, 
as  in  the  use  of  "  good  tidings  "  (or, 
gospel)  of  Israel  in  the  wilderness  in 
ch.  iv.  2,  is  to  put  the  experience  of 
the  Hebrew  Christians  on  the  same 
plane  as  that  of  their  ancestors  in 
the  faith.  It  is  in  this  way  some- 
what similar  to  the  adaptation  of 
Christian  language  to  the  history  of 
Israel  in  1  Cor.  x.  2-5.  The  juxta- 
position of  the  phrases  "reproach" 
and  "  reward  "  in  this  place  suggests 
the  possibility  that  the  writer  had  in 
mind  the  Beatitude  (Matt.  v.  11), 
"  Blessed  are  ye  when  men  shall  re- 
proach you... for  gi-eat  is  your  re- 
ward.^' See  on  ch.  xii.  14,  where 
there  seems  to  be  a  reminiscence  of 


two  more  of  the  Beatitudes.  On  the 
use  of  the  phrase  "the  Christ"  or  "the 
Anointed  "  in  such  a  place  as  tliis  it 
will  be  well  to  consult  Dr  Hort's  full 
comment  on  1  Pet.  i.  11. 

looked  unto^  lit.  "  looked  away  to," 
i.e.  looked  on  to,  past  everything 
else. 

27.  forsook  Egypt.  To  what 
incident  do  these  words  refer? 
Westcott  argues  that  they  describe 
the  Exodus.  This  is  evidently  not 
the  view  of  our  translators  either  in 
A.V.  or  R.V.,  or  they  would  not 
have  chosen  the  word  "forsook." 
And  there  is  much  against  the  view : 
(1)  the  unnatural  order,  which  would 
seem  to  put  the  Passover  after  the 
Exodus ;  (2)  the  verb  in  the  singular 
number,  as  though  Moses  went  alone ; 
(3)  the  tameness  of  the  verb  itself  to 
describe  the  leading  out  of  the  people 
"by  their  annies";  (4)  the  irrele- 
vance, at  this  point,  of  the  words 
"  not  fearing  the  wrath,"  for  at  the 
moment  of  their  departure  the  king 
wished  them  to  go.  Is  it  then,  as 
other  editors  say,  the  removal  into 
Midian  of  Exod.  ii.  15?  We  can 
hardly  accept  that  answer  absolute- 
ly :  for  "  not  fearing  the  wTath  of  the 
king"  is  too  paradoxically  in  contra- 
diction to  the  statement  in  Exodus 
that  he  "feared"  and  that  he  "lied 
from  the  face  of  Pharaoh."  It  seems 
best  to  take  it  (as  the  rendering 
"forsook  "  suggests)  of  what  is  related 
in  Exod.  ii.  11,  the  same  verse  which 
has  been  used  already  in  v.  24.  It 
is  said  there  that  he  "  went  out  unto 
his  brethren  and  looked  on  their 
burdens."  There  is  no  need  to 
prove  that  this  would  rouse  Pha- 
i-aoh's  ill  will,  and  require  courage : 
but  can  this  be  described  as  "  forsak- 
ing Egypt "  ?  It  is  pointed  out  that 
Goshen  was  on  the  borders  of 
Egyi>t:   the  Israelites  were  placed 


104 


HEBREWS 


[XI.  AND  XIL  1-4 


there  in  order  to  separate  them 
from  the  Egyptians.  In  Gen.  xlv. 
10  (the  first  place  where  Goshen  is 
named)  the  LXX  describe  it  as  "  of 
Arabia."  Thus,  one  who  went  from 
the  king's  palace  to  his  brethren 
might  fairly  be  described  as  "leaving 
Egypt  behind  him."  If  this  is  not 
satisfactory,  it  may  still  be  argued 
that,  as  the  result  of  his  going  to 
his  brethren  was  the  flight  into 
Midian,  the  total  event  might  be 
foreshortened  into  the  phrase  "for- 
sook Egypt,"  although  the  courage 
spoken  of  apphes  to  the  beginning, 
not  to  the  end,  of  the  transaction,  to 
his  "  forsaking  "  the  palace,  his  giv- 
ing up  his  career  in  Egypt,  not  to  his 
"flight"  into  Midian. 

28.  kept  (or,  instituted).  The 
verb  is  the  common  one  in  the 
LXX  (as  Exod.  xii.  48)  of  "keeping" 
(not  of  instituting)  the  Passover. 
Vaughan  remarks  that  there  are 
three  verbs  employed  according  to 
the  point  of  view  from  which  the  Pass- 
over is  regarded;  to  "kill"  (Hterally 
sacrifice)  of  the  lamb,  as  Exod.  xii. 
21 ;  to  "eat"  of  the  supper,  ib.  11 ; 
and  to  "  keep  "  (lit.  make,  or,  perhaps, 
perform)  of  the  whole  rite.  For  the 
tense  see  on  v.  17.  The  Passover 
might  stand  for  the  whole  system  of 
ritual,  which  was  to  be  subsequently 
ordained,  and  of  which  the  efficacy 
was  to  be  matter  of  faith.   If  so,  it  is 


chosen  because,  in  the  case  of  it,  faith 
had  its  immediate  justification  by 
the  sparing  of  the  firstborn  wherever 
the  blood  was  sprinkled. 

29.  which  the  Egyptians.  The 
force  of  this  clause  is  to  point  out 
that  the  passage  by  Israel  of  the  Red 
Sea  was  not  the  discovery  of  a  path 
by  which  any  one  could  pass  it,  but 
the  eflPect  of  faith,  accomplishing  the 
impossible.  They  had  courage  to  do 
what  the  next  experience  found  dan- 
gerous and  fatal. 

30.  after  they  had  been  com- 
passed. Josh.  vi.  14,  15.  An  in- 
stance of  patience  as  well  as  faith, 
of  faith  which  led  to  refraining,  as 
V.  29  had  spoken  of  faith  which  led 
to  forward  action. 

31.  Rahab.  She  was  remembered 
as  one  who,  though  an  alien,  had 
done  a  supreme  service  to  the  holy 
nation.  Josh.  ii.  1,  vi.  17,  25.  St 
James  (ii.  25)  quotes  her  as  one 
whose  faith  was  shewn  not  by  words 
only  (Josh.  ii.  11,  "the  Lord  your 
God  he  is  God  in  heaven  above  and 
on  the  earth  beneath,  &c."),  but  by 
action.  She  is  quoted  here  as  an 
instance  of  faith  in  the  unseen.  Her 
belief,  however  acquired,  in  God  led 
her  to  choose  the  side  of  the  nation 
then  represented  only  by  the  two  de- 
fenceless spies,  and  so  to  "  save  her- 
self from  an  untoward  generation." 


Faith  in  all  Israelitish  history  (32-40). 

32  And  what  shall  I  more  say  ?  for  the  time  will  fail  me  if 
I  tell   of  Gideon,  Barak,  Samson,  Jephthah  ;   of  David 

33  and  Samuel  and  the  prophets ;  who  through  faith  subdued 
kingdoms,    wrought    righteousness,    obtained    promises, 

34  stopped  the  mouths  of  lions,  quenched  the  power  of  fire, 
escaped  the  edge  of  the  sword,  from  weakness  were  made 
strong,  waxed  mighty  in  war,  turned  to  flight  armies  of 


XI.  AifD  xii.  1-4]  HEBREWS  105 

35  aliens.  Women  received  their  dead  by  a  resurrection :  and 
others  were  ^  tortured,  not  accepting  ^  their  deliverance  ; 

36  that  they  might  obtain  a  better  resurrection  :  and  others 
had  trial  of  mockings  and  scourgings,  yea,  moreover  of 

37  bonds  and  imprisonment :  they  were  stoned,  they  were 
sawn  asunder,  they  were  tempted,  they  were  slain  with 
the  sword :    they   went    about   in    sheepskins,   in   goat- 

38  skins  ;  being  destitute,  afflicted,  evil  entreated  (of  whom 
the  world  was   not  worthy),   wandering   in   deserts  and 

39  mountains  and  caves  and  the  holes  of  the  earth.  And 
these  all  having  had  witness  borne  to  them  through  their 

40  faith,  received  not  the  promise,  God  having  ^provided  some 
better  thing  concerning  us,  that  apart  from  us  they  should 
not  be  made  perfect. 

^  Or,  beaten  to  death  ^  Gr.  the  redemption. 

^  Or,  foreseen 

General  Note  on  vv.  32-40. 

The  order  is  still  generally  chronological :  the  Judges,  David,  the 
Prophets :  although  the  particular  Judges  are  in  an  order  of  importance 
rather  than  of  date.  Samuel  is  put  after  David  in  order  to  bring  him  into 
closer  connexion  with  the  Prophets,  of  whom  he  was  looked  upon  as  the  first 
(Acts  iii.  24).  The  remainder  of  the  passage  aims  at  gathering  under  heads 
different  exhibitions  of  faith  throughout  the  whole  period.  The  arrangement 
in  triplets  {vv.  32-34)  is  a  common  rhetorical  artifice,  and  it  is  difficult  to  say 
how  far  we  are  intended  to  see  exact  correspondences ;  but  perhaps  the 
triplet  of  V.  33,  "subdued  kingdoms,  &c.,"  con-esponds  roughly  with  the 
categories  of  v.  32,  as  though  it  meant  that  Faith  was  the  secret  of  the 
victories  of  the  Judges  (cp.  Judg.  v.  19) ;  of  the  virtues  of  kings  who,  in  the 
frequently  repeated  phiase,  "did  that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of 
the  Lord  " ;  and  of  the  realization  by  the  prophets  of  their  visions.  In  any 
case  there  seems  to  be  a  sense  of  historical  order  in  v.  34  if  the  deliverances 
of  that  verse  are  those  of  the  Cai)tivity  ;  "  escaped  the  edge  of  the  sword," 
if  it  suits  earlier  events,  has  its  most  notable  explanation  in  the  Book 
of  Esther;  the  three  following  instances  have  theirs  in  the  history  of  the 
Maccabees. 

32.  time  will  fail  me.  In  gather-      Dan.  vi.,  as  the  following  instance  is 
ing  traits  of  style,  it  is  worth  noticing      that  of  Dan.  iii. 

that  this  is  a  formula  common  in  34.    from  weakness.    This  might 

classical  literature.  be  explained  of  the  revival  of  the 

if  I  tell — it  means  a  little  more,  "if  nation  after  the  Captivity:  but,  as 

I  go  on  to  tell  in  detail."  has  been   said,  the   three    phrases 

33.  stopped  the  mouths  of  lions.  point  most  definitely  to  the  recovery 


106 


HEBREWS 


[XI.  AND  XII.  1-4 


in  the  days  of  the  Maccabees.  It  is 
noticed  that  the  word  rendered 
"  armies "  has  that  sense  in  the 
Books  of  Maccabees,  but  in  the  O.T. 
generally  it  means  "  camps." 

35.  Women  received  their  dead. 
The  widow  of  Zarephath,  1  Kings  xvii. 
17  f.,  and  the  Shuuamite,  2  Kings  iv. 
32  f.  The  writer  implies  that  the 
result  was  due  to  the  faith  of  the 
mothers  as  well  as  to  that  of  Elijah 
and  Elisha.  The  raising  of  the  dead 
is  put  as  a  climax  to  the  victories  of 
Faith :  but  it  leads  at  once  to  the 
thought  of  the  martyrdoms  of  Faith  : 
and  the  link  is  apparently  in  the 
stories  told  in  2  Mace.  vi.  and  vii.  of 
the  martyrdom  of  Eleazar  and  the 
seven  brethren ;  especially  in  the 
picture  given  of  the  mother  of  the 
seven,  who  is  contrasted  with  the 
two  mothers  just  named,  who  re- 
ceived again  their  dead  sons  by  "  a 
raising  from  the  dead."  He  was 
thinking  of  the  mother's  words  to 
her  seventh  son  (2  Mace.  vii.  28,  29), 
"I  beseech  thee,  my  child,  to  lift 
thine  eyes  unto  the  heaven  and  the 
earth  and  to  see  all  things  that  are 
therein,  and  thus  to  recognize  that 
God  made  them  not  of  things  that 
were....  Fear  not  this  butcher,  but 
proving  thyself  worthy  of  thy  bre- 
thren, accept  thy  death,  that  in  the 
mercy  of  God  I  may  receive  thee 
again  with  thy  brethren."  The  word 
in  this  verse  rendered  "tortured" 
means  (see  marg.) "  beaten  to  death," 
and  the  corresponding  substantive  is 
used  in  2  Mace.  vi.  of  the  instrument 
of  Eleazar's  death.  A  marked  feature 
of  his  story  is  his  refusal  to  "  accept 
deliverance,"  although  modes  of 
evasion  short  of  compliance  were 
pressed  \ipon  him. 

a  better  resurrection :  i.e.  not  a 
mere  return  to  a  mortal  life,  as  in  the 
cases  of   Zarephath    and  Shunem. 


There  is  definite  reference  to  the 
words  of  the  heroic  mother  quoted 
in  the  last  note. 

36.  mockings  and  scourgings. 
Both  words  are  used  in  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  sufierings  of  the  seven 
brothers. 

37.  stoned ;  as  Zechariah,  2  Chron. 
xxiv.  20  f. 

sawn  asunder.  The  traditional 
death  of  Isaiah. 

tempted :  if  the  text  is  sound,  it 
must  be  meant  to  set  the  pain  of 
moral  trials  (as  that  suggested  in 
V.  35,  "not  accepting  their  deliver- 
ance") by  the  side  of  that  of  the 
physical:  but  the  word  is  doubtful. 

sheepskins.  It  is  the  word  in  the 
LXX  (more  definite  than  that  in  the 
Heb.)  for  the  "mantle"  of  Elijah. 
It  is  the  opposite  of  the  "soft 
raiment"  of  Matt.  xi.  8. 

38.  of  whom  the  world  was  not 
wo  rthy :  a  parenthesis,  not  definitely 
coordinated  with  what  follows  any 
more  than  with  what  precedes.  It 
is  the  reflection,  which  cannot  be 
repressed,  on  the  contrast  between 
what  they  were  and  what  their 
treatment  was.  Cp.  with  the  pic- 
ture 1  Cor.  iv.  11,  "we  both  hunger 
and  thirst  and  are  naked  and  have 
no  certain  dwellingplace...We  are 
made  as  the  filth  of  the  world,  the 
oflscouring  of  all  things."  If  we 
press  for  more  definite  explanation 
of  the  thought  it  may  be  either  that 
they  were  the  flower  of  mankind 
worth  all  the  rest  of  the  world,  as  in 
Ecclus.  xliv.  7,  "righteous  Noah"  is 
said  to  be  "  taken  in  exchange "  for 
the  world  (it  is  possibly  one  of  the 
phrases  in  which  the  influence  of  that 
passage  can  be  felt);  or,  that  all 
which  the  world  had  to  give  would 
be  below  their  deserts.  An  epi- 
gi-ammatic  saying  seldom  escapes 
possible    ambiguity;    but    perhaps 


XL  AND  XII.  1-4] 


HEBREWS 


107 


the  two  thoughts  do  not  lie  so  far 
apart  as  to  be  necessarily  distin- 
guished in  the  utterance. 

the  holes  of  the  earth.  The  defi- 
nite article  "<A«  holes,"  seems  to 
imply  reference  to  a  well  known 
feature  or  to  some  particular  in- 
stances. For  the  "caves"  or  "holes" 
(1  Sam.  xiv.  11),  fissures  in  the  lime- 
stone of  Palestine,  and  their  relation 
to  history,  see  Stanley's  Sinai  and 
Palestine,  ch.  ii. 

39.  havi?ig  hacl  witness  borne  to 
them.    See  above,  v.  2. 

received  not  the  promise.  Cp.  ch. 
X.  36.  The  verb,  in  contrast  with 
those  used  in  vi.  12, 15,  xi.  33,  means 
"  to  receive  back,"  "  to  receive  in  full 
payment  of  what  is  due."  The  pro- 
mise, in  the  singular  number,  is  not 
a  particular  promise  but  the  "  thing 
promised,"  the  true  promise  which 
was  behind  all  promises,  the  "pro- 
mise of  the  eternal  inheritance"  of 
ch.  ix.  15. 

40.  provided;  better,  as  in  the 
margin,  "foreseen."  Providere,  to 
foresee,  was  in  Latin  used  in  the  sense 
of  "to  provide" ;  but  there  is  no  proof 


that  the  Greek  word  here  used  ever 
had  that  sense.  It  is  of  God's  fore- 
knowledge  as  explaining  His  order- 
ing. He  "  foresaw  "  (looked  forward 
to)  the  more  perfect  settlement,  in 
which  we  were  to  be  concerned  and  in 
which  they  were  to  share  with  us  the 
full  and  final  reward  of  their  faith. 

made  perfect.  The  verb  used 
means  "  to  put  into  their  final,  com 
plete  condition":  in  what  respect, 
depends  on  the  context.  Here  it  is 
by  the  satisfoction  of  their  hopes,  the 
fulfilment  of  the  promises  to  which 
they  look.  The  expressions  clearly 
helped  to  give  material  for  the 
medieval  pictures,  based  on  1  Pet. 
iii.  19,  of  the  "harrowing  of  hell"; 
but  they  do  not  necessarily  touch 
the  question.  The  saints  of  old  time 
are  described  all  through  this  chapter 
as,  to  the  end  of  their  lives  on  earth, 
looking  forward,  "  desiring  "  (ace.  to 
Matt.  xiii.  17)  "to  see"  what,  save  in 
the  prevision  of  faith,  they  did  not 
see :  it  is  assumed  that  their  faith 
was  to  have  its  reward ;  but  the 
when  and  the  how  are  not  revealed. 


Faith,  in  our  own  lives,  and  in  that  of  the  Lord  Jesus 

(xii.  1,  2). 

XII.  1  Therefore  let  us  also,  seeing  we  are  compassed  about 
with  so  great  a  cloud  of  witnesses,  lay  aside  ^  every  weight, 
and  the  sin  which  ^doth  so  easily  beset  us,  and  let  us  run 
2  with  patience  the  race  that  is  set  before  us,  looking  unto 
Jesus,  the  ^author  and  perfecter  of  our  faith,  who  for  the 
joy  that  was  set  before  him  endured  the  cross,  despising 
shame,  and  hath  sat  down  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
throne  of  God. 

^  Or,  all  encumbrance 

2  Or,  doth  closely  cling  to  us    Or,  is  admired  of  many 

'  Or,  captain 


108 


HEBREWS 


[XI.  AND  XII.  1-4 


General  Note  on  XII.  1,  2. 

These  verses  at  once  draw  the  lesson  from  the  great  catalogue,  and  add 
to  it  the  Supreme  Instance  of  Faith  and  its  reward. 


XII.  1.  Therefore.  It  is  in  the 
Greek  the  most  emphatic  particle  for 
drawing  a  conclusion — the  personal 
conclusion  from  the  long  catalogue. 

compassed.  The  figure  in  the 
original  word  belongs  to  the  meta- 
phor of  the  "cloud."  The  "wit- 
nesses "  are  hke  "  a  bank  of  clouds 
around  us,"  they  close  the  horizon. 

witnesses.  The  Greek  word  does 
not  mean  "spectators,"  but  "those 
who  have  given  witness" — so  many 
to  testify  to  the  reality  of  the  life  for 
which  they  lived  and  died. 

every  weight.  The  exact  figure  is 
uncertain.  The  word  is  used  in  Greek 
medical  writers  for  bulk  of  body,  the 
superfluous  flesh  which  training  is 
directed  to  reduce  ;  and  this  may  be 
the  sense  here.  But  the  word  was 
used  metaphorically  of  any  trouble 
or  encumbrance.  In  any  case  there 
is  the  general  figure  of  an  athlete 
preparing  for  a  contest,  as  in  1  Cor. 
ix.  24  f. 

doth  so  easily  beset  us.  The  alter- 
natives offered  in  the  margin  indicate 
that  the  meaning  of  the  word  is 
doubtful.  It  is  a  word  not  found 
elsewhere.  By  etymology  it  shoidd 
mean  literally  either  "well  stood 
about"  or  "  well  standing  about."  The 
simple  adjective  (without  the  "well") 
is  found  in  both  senses  in  classical 
Greek.  In  the  first  sense  it  would 
mean  "  crowded  round,"  and  so  "ad- 
mired " ;  and  this  meaning  (marg.  2) 
has  been  given  to  it  here,  as  though 
the  meaning  were  "  popular "  sins. 
This  is  not  impossible,  but  it  is  not 
the  sense  which  the  context  leads  us 
to  expect.  If  we  take  the  second, 
the  figure  may  be  either   of  the 


spectators  who  encumber  the  course 
(but  the  phrase  "laying  aside"  or 
"putting  off"  is  not  very  appro- 
priate) ;  or  of  entangling  garments, 
"closely  clinging"  (see  note  on  ch.  x. 
11,"  take  away  ").  This  on  the  whole 
seems  the  preferable.  It  should  be 
noticed  that  it  is  not  a  question  (as 
our  common  use  of  the  phrase  seems 
to  assume)  of  any  specially  "beset- 
ting" sin.  The  epithet  and  the 
thought  are  of  sin,  generally. 

with  patience :  lit.  "  through 
patience,"  i.e.  in  a  continuing  atti- 
tude of  patience. 

2.  looking  unto.  See  on  ch.  xi. 
26,  "  looked  unto."  It  is  not  the  same 
verb,  but  it  is  compounded  with  the 
same  preposition  and  with  the  same 
sense  ;  "  looking  away  unto,"  looking 
away  from  our  own  troubles,  past 
anything  that  would  attract  or 
frighten,  fastening  all  our  attention 
on  the  supreme  Example. 

Jesus.    See  on  ch.  iv.  14. 

author  [or  captain^  and  per- 
Jecter  of  [our^  faith.  "  Our  "  is  not 
wanted.  The  Greek  article  with 
"  faith  "  means  "  the  faith  "  of  which 
we  have  been  speaking,  of  which  so 
many  instances  have  been  given. 
He  is  not  only  one  more  in  the  cata- 
logue. He  is  the  Leader  in  the  great 
army,  the  Perfect  Exemplar  of  the 
virtue  which,  "  in  many  portions  and 
in  many  modes,"  they  have  illus- 
trated. For  the  word  translated 
"author"  (or,  "captain"),  see  on  ch.iL 
10. 

tJie  joy,  i.e.  of  winning  the  objects 
of  His  suff'ering.  Is.  liii.  11,  "he 
shall  see  of  the  travail  of  his  soul 
and  shall  be  satisfied." 


XII.  5-11]  HEBREWS  109 

set  before  him.    The  word  is  meant  others  despise  them,  is  what  men 

to  recall  the  figure  of  the  "  race  which  most  dread.     He  met  it  with  its  own 

is  set  before  us."    It  may  be  noticed  weapon.     He  despised  it. 

also  that  in  the  Greek  the  word  trans-  hath  sat  down.    The  tense  implies 

lated  "  endured  "  (im-e/ieii'f ,  i.e.  en-  that  He  sits  there.     This  is  the  last 

dured  patiently,  see  below  on  v.  7)  reference  to  the  prophecy  which  has 

is  chosen  to  recall  "with  patience"  been    so    much   before   us   in    the 

{bC  vTTOfiovfjs)  in  V.  1.     Jesus  is  to  be  Epistle.     It  serves  to  recall  the  past 

our  pattern  in  all  respects.  argument.    We  are  meeting  most 

despising  shatne.     The  R.V.  has  directly  and  in  a  tone  as  of  defiance 

done  well  to  omit  the  interpolated  the  lingering  Jewish  misgiving  at  the 

"the"  of  A.V.     It  is  a  larger,  and  idea  of  a  crucified  Messiah:   "the 

therefore  a  more  pointed  expression  cross,"  "despising  shame,"  "  the  right 

than  "  the  shame,"  i.e.  the  shame  of  hand  of  the  throne  of  God." 
the  Cross.    Shame,  the  sense  that 

Introductory  Note  on  XII.  3-end. 

The  rest  of  chapter  xii.  is  occupied 

(1)  Vv.  3-1 1,  with  the  suggestion  of  another  aspect  of  the  present  state 
of  distress,  put  chiefly  in  the  tender  and  parental  language  of  the  Book  of 
Proverbs ;  the  aspect  of  suff'ering  as  discipline,  intended  to  perfect  the 
character. 

(2)  Fv.  12-17,  with  the  warning  against  allowing  their  courage  to  be 
undermined  from  within.  There  must  be  no  lurking  taint  of  immorality,  no 
Esau-like  betraying  of  their  birthright. 

(3)  Vc.  18-end,  with  the  contrasted  picture  of  the  circumstances  of 
the  two  Revelations ;  that  of  Sinai,  and  that  of  the  heavenly  Jerusalem ; 
with  the  same  conclusion  as  that  of  ch.  ii.  3,  "how  shall  we  escape  if  we 
neglect  so  great  salvation  ? " 


XII.  3-11.    Suffering  as  discipline. 

3  For  consider  him  that  hath  endured  such  gainsaying  of 
sinners  against  ^themselves,  that  ye  wax  not  weary,  fainting 

4  in  your  souls.     Ye  have  not  yet  resisted  unto  blood,  striving 

5  against  sin  :  and  ye  have  forgotten  the  exhortation,  which 
reasoneth  with  you  as  with  sons, 

My  son,  regard  not  lightly  the  chastening  of  the  Lord, 
Nor  faint  when  thou  art  reproved  of  him  : 

6  For  whom  the  Lord  loveth  he  chasteneth 
And  scourgeth  every  son  whom  he  receiveth. 

7  ^  It  is  for  chastening  that  ye  endure  ;  God  dealeth  with  you 
as  with  sons  ;  for  what  son  is  there  whom  his  father  chas- 

8  teneth  not  ?     But  if  ye  are  without  chastening,  whereof  all 


110 


HEBREWS 


[xii.  5-11 


have  been  made  partakers,  then  are  ye  bastards  and  not 

9  sons.  Furthermore  we  had  the  fathers  of  our  flesh  to  chasten 

us,  and  we  gave  them  reverence  :  shall  we  not  much  rather 

10  be  in  subjection  unto  the  Father  of  ^spirits  and  live?  For 
they  verily  for  a  few  days  chastened  us  as  seemed  good  to 
them  ;  but  he  for  our  profit,  that  we  may  be  partakers 

11  of  his  holiness.  All  chastening  seemeth  for  the  present  to 
be  not  joyous,  but  grievous  ;  yet  afterward  it  yieldeth 
peaceable  fruit  unto  them  that  have  been  exercised  there- 
by, even  the  fruit  of  righteousness. 

1  Many  authorities,  some  ancient,  read  himself. 

2  Or,  Endure  unto  chastening  ^  Or,  our  spirits 


3.  consider.  The  Greek  word  is 
not  the  emphatic  "consider"  ("set 
all  your  thoughts  on  ")  of  iii.  1  and  x. 
24,  but  means  rather  "compare," 
"  strike  the  balance  between  "  what 
He  endured  and  what  you  endure. 

sinners  against  themselves.  This 
is  a  translation  of  the  best  supported 
reading,  and  is  explained  by  the 
words  which  are  used  in  Numb.  xvi. 
38  of  Korah  and  his  company, 
"these  sinners  against  [lit.  in  the 
matter  of]  their  own  souls  (or,  lives)," 
and  which  passed  into  a  proverbial 
phrase  (so  in  Prov.  xx.  2  ;  cp.  also 
Hab.  ii.  10;  1  Kings  ii.  23).  For  the 
full  meaning  of  "themselves"  in  this 
rendering  cp.  note  on  ch.  x.  34, 
"yourselves."  It  may  be  noticed 
that  the  "  gainsaying  (the  same  word 
as  here)  of  Korah"  is  a  phrase 
which  occurs  in  Jude  11.  They 
were  their  own  worst  enemies. 
They  "knew  not  what  they  did," 
The   phrase   seems    to  have  point 

(1)  as  reminding  the  readers  that 
persecution  was  worse  for  the  perse- 
cutors than  for  the  persecuted  :  they 
may  view  it  as  their  Lord  viewed  it, 
with  pity  for  those  who  inflicted  it ; 

(2)  as  suggesting  another  point  of 
comparison    between    Christ    and 


Moses.  A.V.  follows  the  alternative 
reading  "against  himself,"  which 
must  then  be  taken  (though  the  Greek 
is  more  diflicult)  with  "gainsaying," 
the  thought  then  being  as  in  1  Pet. 
ii.  23,  "follow  his  steps  who... when 
he  was  reviled,  reviled  not  again." 
"Gainsaying,"  like  the  Greek  word 
which  it  renders,  meant  literally  only 
"speaking  in  opposition  to,"  but  it 
implies  a  certain  tone  and  temper  in 
the  speech.  Vaughan  illustrates  it 
well  by  John  xix.  12,  where  "speaketh 
against  Caesar"  (the  cognate  verb) 
implies  "as  a  rebel." 

4f  Two  reasons  are  suggested 
why  the  "  looking  away  "  from  their 
own  troubles  to  those  which  Jesus 
endured  should  fortify  their  resolu- 
tion. The  first  {v.  4)  is  stated  in 
terms  :  they  will  feel  that  their  own 
trials  do  not  yet  reach  the  measure 
of  the  Cross.  The  second  {v.  5)  is 
expressed  more  reticently ;  but  it 
can  hardly  but  be  that,  in  represent- 
ing their  siifibrings  as  the  natural 
discipline  of  sons,  the  wi'iter  is 
recalling  the  temper  of  the  Son  who 
"learned  obedience  by  the  things 
which  he  suffered." 

4,  5.  Better,  "  your  resistance  was 
not  yet  unto  blood,... and  you  had 


XII.  5-11] 


HEBREWS 


111 


forgotten,  &c."  The  first  verb  is 
a  simple  piist  (aorist)  tense,  not  a 
perfect,  as  our  versions  give  it :  and 
the  second,  though  it  may  be  a  per- 
fect, can  also  be  taken,  and  is  better 
taken,  as  a  pluperfect.  The  first 
refers  to  some  definite  moment  of 
persecution  in  the  recent  past:  the 
second  to  the  state  of  mind  which 
had  preceded  it.  Mr  Kendall  argues 
withforcethat(apartfrom  the  greater 
accuracy)  this  rendering  softens  the 
harshness  of  the  charge.  Other 
editors  (as  Westcott),  with  the  same 
purpose,  have  made  the  second  clause 
interrogative,  "Have  you  forgotten  ?"; 
but  the  clauses  then  do  not  hang  to- 
gether so  well. 

sin ;  here,  as  so  often  in  the 
Epistle,  with  the  special  sense  of 
the  temptation  to  apostatize. 

5.  exhortation  ;  a  word  which  in 
its  N.T.  use  is  translated  in  the  R.V. 
19  times  out  of  25  by  "  comfort "  or 
"consolation,"  seven  times  (as  here 
and  in  xiii.  22,  where  it  describes 
the  purpose  of  this  Epistle)  by  "ex- 
hortation," once  (2  Cor.  viii.  4)  by 
"  entreaty,"  once  (in  this  Epistle,  vi. 
18)  by  "encouragement."  The  last 
two  renderings  indicate  the  link  be- 
tween the  first  two.  Its  literal 
meaning  is  "calling  from  [one  set 
of  thoughts  to  another]."  When  it 
is  rendered  "exhortation"  there  is 
still  a  suggestion  of  tenderness  in 
the  tone  and  purpose.  It  is  applied 
here  fitly  to  the  fatherly  tone  of  the 
Book  of  Proverbs.  With  the  personi- 
fication, "the  exhortation  which 
reasoneth,"  we  may  compare  Luke 
xi.  49,  "  Therefore  also  said  the  wis- 
dom of  God,  I  wiU  send,  &c."  The 
quotation  is  from  Prov.  iii.  11,  12. 
Similar  words  are  put  into  the  mouth 
of  Ehphaz  in  Job  v.  17. 

reasoneth,  or,  "  converseth."  The 
word  is  chosen  to  indicate  the  tone 


of  one  who  puts  himself  on  the  level 
of  the  person  to  whom  he  speaks, 
content  to  argue  and  hear  reply. 

regard  not  lightly.  Two  attitudes 
in  the  face  of  Divine  chastisement 
are  deprecated ;  stolid  indifi"erence, 
that  does  not  trace  the  Hand  or  learn 
the  lesson ;  and  desjiair,  the  de- 
spondency of  which  we  hear  so  much 
in  the  Epistle. 

reproved.  "  Chasten  "  (the  Greek 
word  means  properly  to  "treat  as  chil- 
dren ")  is  the  more  general  word  to 
describe  the  purposes  of  adversity  ; 
it  is  "educational,"  disciphnary. 
"Reprove"  describes  one  part  of 
such  discipline,  namely  the  revela- 
tion to  a  man  of  his  o\vn  faults  :  cp. 
Prov.  ix.  8,  "  Reprove  (it  is  the  same 
word)  a  wise  man,  and  he  will  love 
thee." 

6.  receiveth  :  i.e.  recognizes  as  a 
son.  The  contrast  is  made  plain  in 
the  explanation  in  ».  8. 

7.  It  is  for  chastening  that  ye 
endure.  The  verb  rendered  "en- 
dure "  must  have  the  same  meaning 
here  as  in  ch.  x.  32,  xii.  2,  3,  and 
in  the  N.T.  generally,  viz.  "bear 
patiently,"  not  merely  "  bear."  But 
this  does  not  oblige  us  (as  marg.)  to 
translate  the  verb  as  imperative, 
"  endure  with  a  view  to  chastening." 
The  Greek  puts  "  for  chastening  "  in 
the  place  of  emphasis :  it  is  there- 
fore rightly  rendered  "It  is  for  chas- 
tening that,  &c."  The  wi-iter  might 
have  said  "  ye  sufler,"  but  he  substi- 
tutes "ye  bear  patiently,"  i.e.  "In 
bearing  patiently  (he  tenderly  as- 
sumes that  they  do  so)  you  are 
treating  the  suff'ering  as  chastening." 
It  is  the  practical  application  of  the 
quotation  from  the  Proverbs.  Then 
follow  some  arguments  in  supi)ort  of 
the  advice  ;  ®w.  7,  8,  "it  is  a  proof  of 
sonship";  vv.  9,  10,  "the  heavenly 
discipline  has  higher  ends  than  that 


112 


HEBREWS 


[xii.  12-17 


of  earthly  parents";  ».  11,  "though 
painful  at  the  moment,  it  leads  to 
peace  and  righteousness."  It  should 
be  noticed  that  R.V.  is  translating  a 
different  text  from  A.V.,  viz.  "for," 
i.e.  "with  a  view  to  "  {els\  instead  of 
"if"  (ei).  The  change  so  made  is  in 
accordance  with  all  ancient  MSS  and 
other  evidence. 

9.  Father  of  spirits ;  possibly  a 
reminiscence  of  the  expression  which 
occurs  twice  in  Numb.  xvi.  22,  xxvii. 
16,  "the  God  of  the  spirits  of  all 
flesh." 

and  live,  i.e.  in  the  highest  sense 
of  life.  The  meaning  is  indicated  in 
the  following  sentence:  the  earthly 
discipline  is  with  a  view  to  "a  few 


days,"  i.e.  to  a  life  itself  short ;  the 
heavenly  with  a  view  to  a  life  of 
holiness,  i.e.  in  union  with  God  and 
therefore  eternal. 

10.  as  seemed  good  to  them ;  a 
second  difference  between  the  human 
and  the  Divine  chastening.  The 
former  will  be  wise  or  unwise,  ac- 
cording to  the  judgement  of  the 
chastener.  The  latter  goes  unerr- 
ingly to  the  good  of  the  chastened. 

11.  peaceable  fruit... [fruit]  of 
righteousness.  The  "fruit,"  or  re- 
sult, of  the  discipline  has  two 
qualifications.  It  is  peace  after 
storms,  peace  of  soul ;  and  it  is 
righteousness,  perfected  character. 


XII.  12-17.    Warning  against  moral  inconsistencies. 

12  Wherefore  ^lift  up  the  hands  that  hang  down,  and  the 

13  palsied  knees  ;  and  make  straight  paths  for  your  feet,  that 
that  which  is  lame  be  not  ^  turned  out  of  the  way,  but  rather 

14  be  healed.   Follow  after  peace  with  all  men,  and  the  sancti- 

15  fication  without  which  no  man  shall  see  the  Lord  :  looking 
carefully  ^lest  there  be  any  man  that  *falleth  short  of  the 
grace  of  God  ;  lest  any  root  of  bitterness  springing  up 

16  trouble  you,  and  thereby  the  many  be  defiled  ;  ^lest  there 
be  any  fornicator  or  profane  person,  as  Esau,  who  for  one 

17  mess  of  meat  sold  his  own  birthright.  For  ye  know  that 
even  when  he  afterward  desired  to  inherit  the  blessing,  he 
was  rejected  (for  he  found  no  place  of  repentance)  though 
he  sought  it  diligently  with  tears. 


1  Gr.  make  straight. 
^  Or,  whether 

12,  13.  The  two  verses  may  be 
paraphrased  :  Wherefore  (i.e.  seeing 
that  the  present  distress  is  a  sign  of 
God's  love  and  has  happy  pui-poses) 
listen  to  the  voices  of  your  own 
Scriptures,  of  Prophet  and  Sage, 
which    call    you    to    hearten    one 


*  Or,  put  out  of  joint 

*  Or,  falleth  back  from 

another  for  your  journey  to  the 
Holy  Land,  and  bid  you  clear  one 
another's  path  from  obstacles  and 
stumblingblocks.  The  passages  used 
are  Isaiah  xxxv.  3  and  Prov.  iv.  26, 
27. 

13.    straight  paths.  The  question 


XII.  12-17] 


HEBREWS 


113 


has  been  raised  why  a  straight  path 
is  especially  in  the  interest  of  the 
lame.  The  Heb.  text  of  Pro  v.  iv. 
26  (as  represented  in  R.V.)  has 
"  level,"  which  explains  itself. 
"Straight"  seems  to  be  not  so 
much  part  of  a  continuous  meta- 
phor as  a  moral  interpretation:  see 
?'.  11  of  the  same  chapter,  where  the 
Greek  has  again  "straight  paths" 
and  the  Heb.  "paths  of  uprightness." 
The  admonition  is  to  take  a  clear 
and  straightforward  line.  There  is 
something  of  the  same  figure  in  ch. 
xiii.  9,  "be  not  carried  away  (or, 
aside)  by  divers  and  strange  teach- 
ings." They  are  to  think  in  this 
matter  of  the  effect  of  their  example 
on  the  weaker  brethren. 

be  not  turned  out  of  the  way.  It 
has  been  proposed  (as  in  the  margin 
of  R.V.)  to  translate  iKxpaivfj,  instead 
of  "  turned  out  of  the  way,"  "put  out 
of  joint,"  which  is  a  recognized  medi- 
cal use  of  the  word.  This  makes  a 
continuous  figure  with  the  accom- 
panying word  "  be  healed  "  ;  but  it 
gives  an  unexpected  prominence 
and  emphasis  to  the  metaphor  and 
increases  the  awkwardness,  already 
spoken  of,  in  the  epithet  "straight 
[paths]." 

14.  Folloic  after  peace.  Like  St 
Peter  (1  Pet.  iii.  II ;  cp.also  Rom.xiv. 
19)  the  writer  falls  into  the  language 
of  Ps.  xxxiv.  14.  "Follow  after  (or, 
pursue)  peace"  is  equivalent  to  St 
Paul's  "If  it  be  possible,  as  much  as 
in  you  lieth,  be  at  peace  with  all 
men"  (Rom.  xii.  18).  It  is  a  natural 
exhortation  as  addressed  to  the 
Hebrew  Christians  at  the  time,  not 
to  provoke  persecution  or  mix  in 
political  movements ;  but  there  is 
probably  in  view  also  the  danger  of 
internal  dissension.  See  on  ch.  xiii. 
20. 

the   sanctification ;    not    exactly 


"hohness"  (as  A.V.  and  as  in  v.  10,  i.e. 
the  character  of  one  who  is  holy)  but 
"growth  in  holiness,"  "the  process  of 
making  the  character  such  as  befits 
the  consecrated."  Strictness  in  the 
personal  life  is  to  be  the  complement 
of  the  attitude  of  peace  towards  the 
world  outside.  It  is  suggested  that 
the  words  "without  which,  «Scc.," 
shew  that  the  wiiter  had  in  mind 
the  two  Beatitudes  which  stand  to- 
gether in  Matt.  v.  8,  9.  See  on  ch.  xi. 
26. 

15.  The  framework  of  the  sentence 
and  much  of  its  phraseology  come 
directly  from  Deut.  xxix.  18  ;  and 
the  general  purport  is  the  same, 
viz.  the  danger  lest  among  the 
Covenant-people  there  may  be  re- 
creants to  corrupt  the  rest. 

falleth  short  of;  more  literally  "is 
(continuously)  falling  behind  from." 
It  implies  separation  further  and 
further  from  that  Divine  Grace 
with  which  he  fails  to  keep  pace. 
The  words  in  Deut.,  which  it  re- 
places, are  "whose  heart  turneth 
away  from  the  Lord." 

lest  any  root  of  bitterness  spring- 
ing up  trouble  [you}  The  words  in 
Deut.,  which  this  clause  represents, 
are  in  the  Heb.  (R.V.)  "lest  there 
should  be  among  you  a  root  that 
beareth  gall  (LXX  that  shooteth 
forth  in  gall)  and  wormwood."  One 
MS  (the  Alexandrine)  of  the  LXX 
has  the  words  in  Deut.  as  they 
stand  in  this  Epistle,  "root  of  bit- 
terness... trouble  [you]."  Now  the 
two  words  rendered  from  the  LXX 
"  in  gall  "  are,  with  the  transposition 
of  two  letters  (eV  x°^.V — ^^^X^^\ 
identical  with  the  single  word  ren- 
dered "trouble  you."  It  is  clear 
therefore  that  there  has  been  a  con- 
fusion at  some  time  between  the  two 
readings.  Few  will  doubt  that  "in 
gall "  was  the  original  reading  in  the 


114 


HEBREWS 


[xii.  12-17 


LXX.  It  may  also  have  been  the 
original  reading  in  this  place ;  but 
on  the  whole  the  evidence  points  to 
the  confusion  having  arisen  in  the 
text  of  the  LXX  and  to  the  writer 
of  this  Epistle  having  found  in  it 
"trouble  [you]." 

the  many ;  the  general,  body  of 
the  Church. 

16.  fornicator  or  profane  per- 
son. The  "  root  of  bitterness  "  (i  .e.  a 
root  of  some  poisonous  or  mischievous 
weed  which  may  spread  in  the  soil) 
is  a  metaphorical  description  taken 
from  the  words  of  Deut.  Two  forms 
are  then  suggested  which  this  evil 
influence  may  take  :  (1)  personal  evil 
living,  (2)  disregard  of  religious  posi- 
tion and  privilege.  The  first  is  the 
temptation  always  at  hand  (cp.  xiii. 
4)  and  most  fatal  to  the  "  sanctifica- 
tion"  of  V.  14.  St  Paul  has  another 
metaphor  for  its  tainting  eff"ect  on 
the  Christian  society,  1  Cor.  v.  7  f. 

profane  person.  The  common  use 
of  the  word  rendered  "profane"  is 
of  places  or  things  "unconsecrated," 
"  open  to  the  common  tread."  But 
it  is  also  found  of  persons,  and  with 
a  moral  meaning,  as  in  Ezek.  xxi.  25 
(LXX  and  A.V.),  "profane,  wicked 
prince."  It  would  mean  here  "with- 
out the  religious  sense."  Esau  in 
the  story  shewed  this  lack  in  treat- 
ing so  lightly  his  birthright  with  its 
religious  import,  the  priesthood  of 
the  family  and  the  mysterious  pro- 
mises. His  levity  and  insensibihty 
(Weatcott)  are  strongly  marked  in 
the  narrative  in  Gen.  xxv.  34,  "he 
did  eat  and  drink  and  rose  up  and 
went  his  way  :  so  Esau  despised  his 
birthright." 

17.  afterward:  i.e.  in  the  story 
of  Gen.  xxvii.  In  that  case  Esau  is 
depicted  as  desiring  to  receive  the 
firstborn's  blessing. 

was  reflected.    It  is  the  technical 


Greek  term  for  the  rejection  of  a 
candidate  for  oflBce  on  scrutiny  as 
disqualified.  Esau  was  "disquali- 
fied," by  the  course  of  events,  by  the 
ordering  of  God's  Providence. 

place  of  repentance,  i.e.  an  oppor- 
tunity of  an  eff"ective  change  of  pur- 
pose. It  was  a  phrase  of  Latin  law, 
locus  poenitentiae ;  but  it  is  found 
in  Greek  in  Wisdom  xii.  10  as  well 
as  here,  and  in  a  passage  of  Clement 
of  Rome  (c.  vii.,  "The  Lord  gave  a 
place  of  repentance  to  those  who  were 
willing  to  turn  to  him  "),  a  passage, 
it  should  be  said,  which  is  full  of 
reminiscences  of  this  Epistle. 

though  he  sought  it.  R.V.,  by 
putting  "for  he... repentance"  into 
brackets  as  a  parenthesis,  indicates 
that  "  it "  means  "  the  blessing,"  not 
"repentance."  The  reference  is 
clear  to  Gen.  xxvii.  38,  "  Hast  thou 
but  one  blessing,  0  my  father  ? 
Bless  me,  even  me  also,  0  my  father. 
And  Esau  lifted  up  his  voice  and 
wept."  It  would  be  possible  also 
(removing  the  bracket)  to  take  "i7" 
to  be  "  repentance "  (the  Greek  for- 
bids us  to  take  it,  as  English  readers 
are  apt  to  take  it,  as  "room  for 
repentance").  The  sense  is  not 
materially  altered.  In  any  case 
"  repentance "  means  here  only 
"change  of  purpose."  He  had  de- 
spised the  blessing:  now  he  desired 
it.  He  might  be  said  either  to  seek 
the  blessing  or  to  seek  an  (eflfective) 
change  of  purpose. 

The  instance  of  Esau  has  a  closer 
relation  to  the  Hebrew  Christians 
than  to  ordinary  cases  of  forfeited 
opportunity.  They  are,  in  respect 
of  the  Gospel,  as  the  natural  heir  of 
the  firstborn's  blessing  who  is  in 
danger  of  letting  it  pass  to  others. 
See  Acts  xiii.  46. 

As  the  "  for "  in  the  next  verse 
indicates,  the  thought  of  this  instance 


XII.  18-24]  HEBREWS  115 

of  the  irrecoverable  loss  of  a  blessing  final  comparison  between  the  two 
is  the  link  by  which  the  writer  passes  Covenants  in  respect  of  dignity  and 
to  the  next  passage  {pp.  18-29),  his      blessedness. 


XII.  18-24.    The  Old  Covenant  contrasted  with 

THE  New. 

18  For  ye  are  not  come  unto  '^amount  that  might  be  touched, 
and  that  burned  with  fire,  and  unto  blackness,  and  darkness, 

19  and  tempest,  and  the  sound  of  a  trumpet,  and  the  voice  of 
words  ;  which  voice  they  that  heard  intreated  that  no  word 

20  more  should  be  spoken  unto  them  :  for  they  could  not  en- 
dure that  which  was  enjoined.  If  even  a  beast  touch  the 

21  mountain,  it  shall  be  stoned ;  and  so  fearful  was  the 
appearance,  that  Moses  said,  I  exceedingly  fear  and  quake : 

22  but  ye  are  come  unto  mount  Zion,  and  unto  the  city  of 
the  living  God,  the  heavenly  Jerusalem,  ^and  to  ^innumer- 

23  able  hosts  of  angels,  to  the  general  assembly  and  church  of 
the  firstborn  who  are  enrolled  in  heaven,  and  to  God  the 
Judge  of  all,  and  to  the  spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect, 

24  and  to  Jesus  the  mediator  of  a  new  ^covenant,  and  to 
the  blood  of  sprinkling  that  speaketh  better  ^than  that  of 
Abel. 

1  Or,  a  palpable  and  kindled  fire 

2  Or,   and  to  innumerable  hosts,   the  general   assembly  of  angels,    and   the 
church  of,  (£c. 

'  Gr.  myriads  of  angels.  *  Or,  testament  ^  Or,  than  Abel 

18,19.     Asin».  15  the  framework  and  was  not  read  by  Chrysostom, 

and  much  of  the  phraseology  come  who  takes  (as  the  margin  of  R.V.) 

from  a  passage  of  Deuteronomy  (iv.  "  that  might   be    touched "    as    an 

11,  supplemented  in  this  case  from  epithet   of  "fire,"  "palpable  fire." 

Bxod.   xix.).    "Ye   came  near... the  This,    though    it    is    accepted    by 

mountain  burned  with  fire... black-  Westcott,  is  strange  and  unlikely, 

ness  and  darkness  and  tempest. .  .the  for 

voice  of  words "  are  all  phrases  that  (1)     "palpable"    is    an    English 

occur  in  the  passage  of  Deut.  phrase   which   has   nearly   lost  its 

18.    ye  are  not  come,  i.e.  as  your  special  meaning,  and  stands  merely 

ancestors  came,  at  the  time  of  the  for  "sensible";  but  there  is  no  proof 

First  Covenant,  to  Mt  Sinai.  that  the  Greek  word  had  in  the  same 

[a    mount.]     A.V.    reads     "  the  way  lost  its  literal  sense.    Whenever 

mount "  as  part  of  the  text.     But  the  verb  from  which  it  comes  is  used 

it  is  not  fomid  in  the  older  MSS  in  the  LXX  or  N.T.  it  has  a  very 

8—2 


116 


HEBREWS 


[xii.  18-24 


definite  sense  of  "handling,"  "feel- 
ing," "groping  about." 

(2)  This  rendering  involves  the 
further  step  of  translating  the  fol- 
lowing vpords  "  a  kindled  fire  "  (see 
margin),  a  phrase  to  which  it  is  difli- 
cult  to  give  any  point,  and  which 
loses  the  connexion  with  Deut.,  which 
has  the  word  in  another  sense,  "  the 
mountain  burned  with  fire." 

If  then  "a  mount"  in  the  later 
MSS  is  only  an  interpretative  gloss, 
it  would  still  seem  (as  R.V.  indicates 
by  retaining  it,  but  in  italics)  to  give 
the  true  interpretation.  It  is  evident 
that  "  a  mount "  was  in  the  writer's 
mind  when  he  began  the  sentence. 
The  gist  of  it  is  a  contrast  between 
the  two  Covenants,  as  represented 
by  Mt  Sinai  on  the  one  side,  with  its 
lurid  accessories,  and  on  the  other 
the  idealized  Mt  Zion :  cp.  the  con- 
trast in  Gal.  iv.  25,  26,  "  Mt  Sinai  in 
Arabia... Jerusalem  that  is  above." 
As  the  sentence  starts,  it  seems 
natural  for  the  moment  that  the 
substantive  in  agreement  with  the 
participles  rendered  "that  might  be 
touched"  and  "that  burned"  should 
be  omitted,  because  it  was  to  come 
in  the  corresponding  clause ;  but  as 
the  description  recalled  from  Deut. 
iv.  lengthens  and  draws  other  details, 
the  contrasted  "Mount  Zion"  does 
not  come  tiU  v.  22.  The  writer  shews 
that  he  is  conscious  that  the  paren- 
thesis has  been  long,  by  repeating 
there  the  key- word  "ye  are  come." 
The  omission  of  "a  mount"  in  ».  18 
is,  in  other  words,  to  be  explained  as 
one  of  the  incidents  (of  which  there 
are  many)  in  which  the  Epistle  ex- 
hibits the  characteristics  of  spoken 
rather  than  written  composition. 
To  this  explanation  we  may  add  a 
point  noticed  by  Vaughan.  He  calls 
attention  (in  a  note  on  v.  22)  to  the 
order  of  the  words  in  that  verse, 


which  in  Greek  is  2iaiv  Spei,  "Zion 
mountain,"  whereas  in  all  the  23 
cases  where  this  combination  oc- 
curs in  the  O.T.  the  two  words  are 
placed  in  the  LXX  in  the  order 
"Mount  Zion."  An  alteration  of 
the  usual  order  of  words  in  Greek 
is  always  for  the  purpose  of  emphasis. 
The  emphasis  then  is  on  "  Zion,"  and 
this,  he  suggests,  is  because  it  is  the 
word  of  contrast ;  "Zion  mountain"  is 
set  ofl"  against  the  mountain  previous- 
ly described.  In  other  words  "moun- 
tain" is  constructively  indicated  as 
the  word  common  in  thought  to  the 
two  sentences.  Thus  the  omission  of 
the  word  in  ».  18  is  virtually  supplied. 
that  might  be  touched,  lit. "that  was 
(or,  is)  touched."  The  verb  of  which 
these  words  represent  the  participle 
is  used,  as  has  been  said,  properly,  not 
of  merely  "touching,"  but  of  hand- 
ling, sometimes  of  handling  fre- 
quently, familiarly,  as  in  1  John  i.  1, 
more  often  of  handling  without  sight, 
"  groping  about,"  as  of  blind  Samson 
"feeling  the  pillars,"  Judg.  xvi.  26, 
or  of  the  human  spirit  blindly  "feel- 
ing after  "  God,  Acts  xvii.  27.  What 
is  its  force  and  purpose  here  ?  It  is 
not  one  of  the  words  used  in  the  pas- 
sage of  Deut.  or  Exod. ;  yet  it  is  so 
imbedded  in  the  quoted  words  that 
it  should  have  some  relation  to  the 
picture  presupposed.  That  picture 
is,  if  we  put  the  two  passages  to- 
gether, of  the  mountain  as  on  fire 
above,  where  God  "descended  upon" 
it,  and  as  wrapt  in  darkness  below. 
The  people  are  summoned  to  stand 
"  at  the  nether  part  of  the  mountain," 
but  are  warned  not  to  come  beyond 
a  certain  point  lest  they  should 
"break  through  unto  the  Lord  to 
gaze,"  and  perish.  In  a  sense  there- 
fore they  are  forbidden  to  "touch 
the  mountain  "  {v.  20 ;  Exod.  xix.  12). 
But  they  might  also  be  spoken  of  as 


XII.  18-24] 


HEBREWS 


117 


"groping  about  the  mountain."  What 
the  writer  is  doing  is  to  bring  out  the 
repellent  aspect  of  the  Old  Cove- 
nant, the  way  (that  is)  in  which 
those  who  were  invited  to  come  near 
were  yet  kept  at  a  distance,  denied 
real  knowledge,  real  communion.  Its 
features  were  darkness  to  hide,  fire 
to  terrify.  The  phrase  "groped 
about"  is  taken  up  and  explained 
in  the  following  "blackness  and 
darkness  and  tempest,"  as  the 
aspect  of  more  active  terror  is  ex- 
panded in  the  following  verses. 

19.  sound  of  a  trumpet.  Exod. 
xix.  16,  19. 

intreated.  Deut.  v.  25f. ;  Exod.xx. 
19. 

20.  //■  even  a  beast.  Exod.  xix. 
13.  The  additional  words  in  A.V., 
"  or  thrust  through  with  a  dart,"  be- 
long to  the  passage  in  Exodus  and 
were  added  to  the  text  here.  They 
are  not  found  in  the  best  MSS. 

21.  [that]  Moses  said.  The  words 
rendered  "I  exceedingly  fear"  occur 
in  Deut.  ix.  19,  where  Moses  is  de- 
scribing his  sense  of  God's  wrath  at 
the  time  of  the  Golden  Calf.  The 
word  rendered  "I  quake"  does  not 
occur  in  the  Pentateuch  at  all,  but  it 
is  used  of  Moses  in  relation  to  the 
Burning  Bush  in  St  Stephen's  speech 
in  Acts  vii.  32.  On  the  other  hand, 
in  Exod.  xix.  16,  we  read  that  "all 
the  people  trembled";  but  the  word 
in  the  LXX  is  not  the  one  employed 
here.  It  would  seem  that  the  writer 
is  following  the  detail  of  some  tradi- 
tional account  not  known  to  us.  The 
point  is  that  even  the  leader,  the 
"captain  of  their  salvation,"  the 
"mediator  of  the  Covenant,"  felt 
the  terror  as  well  as  the  people. 
It  is  the  climax  before  he  begins 
the  picture  of  the  New  Covenant 
of  mercy  and  grace. 

22-24.      With   Mt  Sinai,   as  the 


scene  of  the  Old  Covenant,  charac- 
terizing by  its  accessories  of  gloom 
and  terror  the  Covenant  itself,  is  put 
in  contrast  the  "Mt  Zion"  of  the 
New  Covenant,  that  is,  the  Christian 
Church  in  its  idea.  It  is  viewed  as 
the  successor  of  the  "Church- in  the 
wilderness,"  and  as  the  fulfilment 
of  its  types  and  promises.  It  is  de- 
scribed therefore  chiefly  in  language 
borrowed  fi-om  the  O.T.,  but  altered 
to  indicate  the  superiority  of  anti- 
type to  type.  The  points  to  be  em- 
phasized are  the  dignity,  vastness, 
variety  of  the  great  sui)erhuman 
society,  its  security,  its  perfection. 
It  is  the  compensation  to  the  Hebrew 
Christian  for  what  he  loses.  It  forti- 
fies him  against  the  contempt  of  those 
whom  he  leaves.  The  general  feeling 
is  of  the  union  in  it  of  earth  with 
heaven,  heaven  brought  to  earth, 
earth  lifted  to  heaven.  But  there 
is  a  progress  between  the  first  three 
categories  and  the  last  three :  the  first 
three  containing  what,  on  one  side 
of  it,  belongs  to  earth — for  he  would 
have  said  with  St  John  that  he  had 
seen  the  "new  Jei-usalem  descending 
out  of  heaven";  the  angels  are 
viewed  (i.  14)  as  "ministering 
spirits,"  the  "firstborn"  are  still  on 
earth,  though  their  "title-deeds  are 
in  heaven":  the  last  three  containing 
what  belongs  wholly  to  the  heavenly 
sphere — God  the  Judge;  the  dis- 
embodied spirits  of  those  who  in 
Him  have  attained  their  consumma- 
tion ;  the  Saviour  at  once  as  Moses 
on  the  Mount,  and  as  the  High 
Priest  with  the  Blood  within  the  veil. 
22.  the  city ;  not  as  something 
different  from  "Zion  mount."  The 
"city  of  God"  is  the  city  on  Mt  Zion 
("great  is  the  Lord  and  highly  to 
be  praised  in  the  city  of  our  God  in 
His  holy  mountain,"  Ps.  xlviii.  1). 
But,  as  the  next  words  make  clear, 


118 


HEBREWS 


[XII.  18-24 


he  does  not  mean  the  literal,  material 
Zion,  or  the  city  on  it,  but  the  arche- 
typal, spiritual  community,  the  "city 
which  hath  foundations"  of  ch.  xi. 
10,  the  "Jerusalem  that  is  above, 
which  is  our  mother  "  of  Gal.  iv.  26, 
the  "new  Jerusalem  which  cometh 
down  from  heaven"  of  Rev.  iii.  12, 
xxi.  2,  10.  And  this  again  is  spoken 
of  in  this  Epistle,  as  throughout  the 
N.T.,  sometimes  (that  is,  in  some 
senses)  as  something  that  is  among 
us,  which  men  have  come  to  or  may 
come  to,  sometimes  as  something 
still  in  the  future,  the  object  of 
hopes  and  dreams,  the  "city  which 
is  to  come,"  ch.  xiii.  14. 

22,  23.  to  innumerable  hosts  of 
angels,  to  the  general  assembly,  &c. 
There  has  been  doubt  as  to  the 
punctuation  of  these  clauses:  the 
simplest  arrangement  is  that  given 
in  the  margin  of  R. V.,  "  and  to  in- 
numerable hosts,  the  general  as- 
sembly of  angels,  and  the  church,  &c." 
"  Innumerable  hosts,"  literally  "  tens 
of  thousands,"  is  the  general  descrip- 
tion of  the  multitude  of  sympathizing 
companions  whom  the  Christian 
finds.  It  is  the  answer  in  one  word  to 
the  feeling,  which  is  pressing  on  these 
Hebrew  Christians,  of  isolation ;  cp. 
Mark  x.  30,  31.  It  is  then  broken  up, 
"the  happy  throng  of  angels,  and  the 
church  on  earth  yni\\  all  its  heritage." 

angels.  "Tens  of  thousands  of 
angels"  are  part  of  the  picture  of 
Sinai,  Deut.  xsxiii.  2.  They  are  to 
be  found,  the  writer  says,  no  less  in 
the  Church  of  the  New  Covenant. 

general  assembly.  The  word  so 
translated  (7rai'7;'yi;p«r),  although 
meaning  by  etymology  no  more 
than  this,  had  acquired  a  special 
force  from  its  appropriation  in 
classical  Greek  to  the  great  national 
gatherings  at  Olympia  and  elsewhere 
for  worship  and  athletic  contests.  It 


church    of   the  firstborn : 
"an   assembly  of   firstborn 


was  used  in  the  LXX  in  the  same 
way  for  the  national  feasts  of  the 
Levitical  Law.  Its  use  here  seems 
intended  to  indicate  the  attitude  of 
the  angelic  host.  They  are  present 
not  (as  in  Jude  14)  as  ministers  of 
judgement,  nor  as  in  Deut.  xxxiii.  as 
part  of  the  awestriking  surroundings 
of  the  Old  Covenant,  but  as  a  gather- 
ing for  joy  and  worship.  Westcott 
compares  the  thought  in  Job  xxxviii 
7  of  the  angels  at  the  Creation  when 
"the  morning  stars  sang  together 
and  all  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for 
joy." 

[the] 
rather 

sons."  There  is  no  definite  article 
in  either  case.  The  word  rendered 
"  church  "  {fKKk-qcria)  is,  again,  a  word 
of  the  Old  Covenant,  and  signifies 
the  people  assembled  for  collective 
action,  whether  of  worship  or  con- 
sultation. The  Christian  assembly 
is  called  an  assembly  of  "firstborn 
sons."  It  is  possible  that  in  the 
antecedents  of  the  title  as  used  here 
there  are  some  links  unknown  to  lis, 
but  some  points  are  clear:  (1)  The 
designation  of  Christians  as  "first- 
born sons"  has  been  helped,  perhaps 
even  suggested,  by  the  contrasted 
case  of  Esau  {v.  16),  who  sold  his 
"birthright"  (it  is  the  cognate  word 
— n-pwroTo/cia —literally,  "what  per- 
tains to  the  firstborn").  (2)  It  is 
nearly  akin  to  the  figure  common  in 
the  N.T.,  which  represents  Christians 
as  "  heirs  of  God,"  "joint  heirs  with 
Christ,"  heirs  to  a  kingdom,  Rom.  viii. 
17 ;  Gal.  iii.  29 ;  Eph.  iii.  6 ;  Jam.  ii.  5 ; 
1  Pet.  i.  4.  (3)  Like  the  other  ex- 
pressions in  this  description  of  the 
privileges  of  the  Christian  covenant, 
it  has  its  roots  in  the  language  of  the 
O.T.  Israel  collectively  is  God's 
"firstborn."  This  is  made  the  ex- 
planation of  the  Passover  deliver- 


XII.  18-24] 


HEBREWS 


119 


ance,  Bxod.  iv.  22,  23.  Individually, 
the  firstborn  sons  of  Israel  belong 
specially  to  God  ("on  the  day  that  I 
smote  all  the  firstborn  in  the  land  of 
Egypt  I  hallowed  unto  me  all  the 
firstborn  in  Israel,"  Numb.  iii.  11), 
i.e.  they  were  in  idea  priests,  the 
priestly  service  of  the  tribe  of  Levi 
being  represented  as  in  substitution 
for  the  service  of  the  firstborn 
(Numb.  iii.  11-13,  40-42;  cp.  Luke 
ii.  22,  23).  In  the  spiritual  Israel  all 
are  firstborn  sons,  all  are  hallowed, 
all  are  priests. 

who  are  enrolled  in  heaven.  The 
word  is  the  same  as  that  used  of  the 
"taxing"  (R.V.  "enrolment,"  or  cen- 
sus, in  Luke  ii.  1).  Similar  figures 
are  common,  as  Exod.  xxxii.  32 ; 
Ps.  Ixix.  28;  MaL  iii.  16;  Luke  x. 
20.  It  is  possible  that  there  is  a 
reference  to  the  "numbering"  of 
the  firstborn  in  Numb.  iii.  40  f  In 
any  case  the  words  add  the  thought 
that  this  dignity  and  privilege  are 
theirs  beyond  the  power  of  man  to 
take  away  or  question.  The  name  of 
each  is  "written  in  heaven." 

God  the  Judge  of  all,  or  possibly, 
as  Westcott,  "the  God  of  all  as 
Judge."  It  is  an  O.T.  phrase,  as 
Gen.  xviii.  25,  "the  Judge  of  all  the 
earth."  The  thought  is  not  so  much 
of  future  judgement  as  of  God's 
righteous  government  as  a  refuge 
for  the  oppressed,  of  God  who  will 
recognize  and  right  them. 

the  spirits ;  not  the  living  only, 
but  the  righteous  of  all  time,  the 
"souls  of  the  righteous  [which]  are 
in  the  hands  of  God,"  Wisd.  iii.  1. 


"Spirits"  in  the  same  sense  as  1  Pet. 
iii.  19. 

just  men  made  perfect,  not  only 
as  they  are  on  earth,  in  imperfection, 
but  who  have  attained  their  full 
growth.  There  is  possibly  a  refer- 
ence back  to  xi.  40.  That  consum- 
mation which,  under  the  Old  Cove- 
nant, was  necessarily  delayed,  has 
now  for  all  become  possible. 

24.  to  Jesus... and  the  blood  of 
sprinkling.  These  stand  last  be- 
cause they  gather  up  the  threads  of 
the  Epistle,  bring  us  back  to  its 
text. 

the  blood  of  sprinkling.  The 
sprinkling  of  the  blood  of  sacrifice 
was  a  part  of  several  rites  of  the 
Law,  as  the  consecration  of  the  High 
Priest  (see  ch.  x.  22),  the  purification 
of  ceremonial  uncleanness  (ch.  ix. 
13)  and  of  a  leper  (Lev.  xiv.  7) ;  but 
the  occasion  thought  of  here  is  clearly 
that  of  the  inauguration  of  the  Cove- 
nant (see  ch.  ix.  19). 

that  speaketh  better  than  [that  of] 
Abel;  another  reference  (see  on  ch. 
xi.  4)  to  the  words  of  Gen.  iv.  10, 
"thy  brother's  blood  crieth  unto  me 
from  the  groiiud."  The  words  seem 
a  substitution  for  such  an  epithet  as 
"atoning"  or  "covenant  sealing."  Is 
it  not  a  train  of  thought  which  would 
naturally  occur  to  a  Jew  speaking  to 
his  countrymen  of  the  Blood  of 
Calvary?  It  was  "innocent  blood," 
the  blood  of  the  last  and  greatest  of 
Martyrs :  but  it  was  not  as  the  blood 
of  the  first  martyr  (Matt,  xxiii.  35; 
cp.  xxvii.  25)  which  cried  for  venge- 
ance on  his  murderer. 


120 


HEBREWS 


[xil.  25-29 


XII.  25-29.    The  end  of  things. 

25  See  that  ye  refuse  not  him  that  speaketh.  For  if  they 
escaped  not,  when  they  refused  him  that  warned  them  on 
earth,  much  more  shall  not  we  escape,  who  turn  away  from 

26  him  ^that  warneth  from  heaven  :  whose  voice  then  shook 
the  earth :  but  now  he  hath  promised,  saying.  Yet  once 
more  will  I  make  to  tremble  not  the  earth  only,  but  also 

27  the  heaven.  And  this  word,  Yet  once  more,  signijfieth  the 
removing  of  those  things  that  are  shaken,  as  of  things  that 
have  been  made,  that  those  things  which  are  not  shaken 

28  may  remain.  Wherefore,  receiving  a  kingdom  that  cannot 
be  shaken,  let  us  have  ^  grace,  whereby  we  may  offer  service 

29  well-pleasing  to  God,  with  ^reverence  and  awe  :  for  our  God 
is  a  consuming  fire. 


^  Or,  that  is  from,  heaven 


2  Or,  thankfulness 


*  Or,  godly  fear 


25.  See  that  ye  refuse  not  him 
that  speaketh.  "Speaketh"  is  used  of 
Revelation,  as  in  ch.i.  1.  We  miss  the 
link  between  the  warning  and  ».  19, 
"they  that  heard  intreated  that  no 
word  more  should  be  spoken  to 
them,"  because  we  translate  one 
and  the  same  verb  in  the  one  case 
"intreated  that  no,  &c.,"  and  in 
the  other  "refuse."  The  word  means 
literally  "to  deprecate,"  "to  beg  oflF," 
and  so,  more  generally,  "to  decline." 
"Your  ancestors,"  he  is  saying,  "de- 
clined to  hear  and  learn  the  lesson  of 
Sinai.  Do  not  you  decline  to  learn 
the  gentler  lesson  of  Calvary." 

if  they  escaped  not.  This  word 
also,  after  the  writer's  manner,  is  a 
link  to  an  earlier  warning,  viz.  that  in 
ch.  ii.  3,  where,  as  here,  he  is  con- 
trasting the  Old  and  the  New  Reve- 
lation, "How  shall  we  escape?" 

warned.     See  on  ch.  viii.  5. 

we... tcho  turn  away.  Comparing 
the  expression  with  ii.  3,  we  notice 
that  the   mere  hypothesis   "if   we 


neglect,"  or  "after  neglecting,"  has 
become  a  definite  charge,  ^^ we... who 
turn  away"  (or  perhaps  rather  "who 
are  turning  away,"  which  leaves  the 
doubt  still  open,  "if  we  persist  in 
turning  away").  On  the  other  hand 
we  notice  the  retention  still  of  we, 
in  which  the  writer  puts  himself  by 
the  side  of  those  whom  he  arraigns, 
and  so  softens  the  charge. 

from  heaven.  Cp.  ch.  iii.  1,  "a 
heavenly  calling,"  and  St  Peter's 
words,  1  Pet.  i.  12,  "that  preached 
the  Gospel  irnto  you  by  the  Holy 
Ghost  sent  down  from  heaven." 

26.  shook  the  earth.  Two  Greek 
verbs  are  used  in  this  passage  and 
translated  by  the  same  English  verb 
"to  shake."  Both  are  used  of  an 
earthquake,  and  in  particular  of  the 
earthquake  as  part  of  the  terrors  of 
Sinai.  See  Judg.  v.  5 ;  Ps.  Ixviii.  9, 
&c. 

hut  now  he  hath  promised.  The 
words  are  from  Haggai  ii.  6.  The 
writer  follows  the  LXX  in  reading 


XIL  25-29] 


HEBREWS 


121 


"Yet  once  more  I  will  shake,"  in- 
stead of  the  fuller  clause  of  the  Heb. 
text,  "Yet  once  more  it  is  a  little 
while  and  I  wiU  shake."  The  change 
makes  it  more  prominently  the  point 
of  the  prophecy  that  there  is  to 
come  yet  one  and  only  one  more 
shaking.  The  first  "shaking"  re- 
ferred to  seems,  from  the  preced- 
ing verse  in  Haggai,  to  have  been 
the  eai'thquake  of  Sinai.  Jewish, 
as  well  as  Christian,  interpreters 
made  the  prophecy  as  a  whole  refer 
ultimately  to  the  Messianic  age. 
"That  which  escapes  the  final  shak- 
ing," the  writer  says,  "is  permanent, 
eternal.  The  Messianic  kingdom, 
which  we  Christians  are  accepting, 
is  that  which  in  this  WTeck  of  an  old 
world  is  to  stand  unshaken."  The 
picture  of  dissolution,  and  of 
failing  hearts  on  the  part  of  those 
who  were  witnessing  the  break-up 
of  the  Jewish  polity,  is  to  be  com- 
pared, both  in  substance  and  in  the 
figures  used,  wth  the  anticipation  of 
that  event  in  our  Lord's  discourses, 
especially  in  Luke  xxi.  lOf. 

27.  as  of  things  that  have  been 
made;  i.e.  of  things  belonging  to  the 
material  creation.  The  material  is 
to  be  dissolved,  the  spiritual  alone 
to  remain.  As  in  the  Gospel  picture, 
we  may  say  that  the  difi"erence  be- 
tween the  end  of  the  Jewish  Dis- 
pensation and  the  end  of  the  world 
is  lost  in  the  foreshortened  perspec- 
tive, or  more  truly  that  the  spiritual 
character  of  the  Christian  Dispensa- 
tion so  occupies  the  mind  that  the 
"  new  heavens  and  the  new  earth  "  of 
prophecy  seem  already  to  have 
come. 

28.  receiving  a  kingdom.  There 
is  a  resemblance  in  the  Greek,  too 
great  to  be  accidental,  to  the  words 
of  Dan.  vii.  18,  where  of  the 
fifth,  the  Messianic,  kingdom  it  is 


said  that  "the  saints  of  the  Most 
High  shall  receive  the  kingdom  and 
possess  the  kingdom  for  ever." 

let  us  have  grace.  If  this  render- 
ing is  right  we  may  compare  (with 
Westcott)  Rom.  v.  1,  R.V.,  "let  us 
have  peace" — let  us  realize,  use, 
God's  grace.  But  the  balance  of  ar- 
gument is  for  the  translation  of  the 
margin,  "thankfulness."  Chrysostom 
and  other  Greek  Fathers  so  take  it. 
"  To  thank  "  is  the  translation  of  the 
two  words  {('xfiv  xa'pt")  in  combina- 
tion in  all  places  where  they  certainly 
occur  in  the  N.T.  (in  3  John  4, 
which  is  quoted  on  the  other  side, 
neither  reading  nor  meaning  is  with- 
out doubt),  as  it  is  the  meaning  of 
the  phrase  in  classical  Greek.  Thank- 
fulness is  specially  in  point  here.  A 
thankful  recognition  of  their  high 
privileges  is  the  remedy  suggested 
for  their  despondency  and  repining. 
It  is  here  the  condition  of  "  service 
well-pleasing  to  God,"  just  as  in  xiii. 
15,  16  the  sacrifice  with  which  "God 
is  well-pleased"  (the  same  word)  is 
declared  to  be  "praise"  as  well  as 
"doing  good." 

offer  service,  i.e.  as  always  in  the 
Epistle,  priestly  service :  for  Chris- 
tians are  "priests"  as  well  as 
"kings." 

reverence  (or  godly /ear).  See  on 
ch.  V.  7  and  xi.  7.  The  temper 
which  has  been  ascribed  to  the 
heroes  of  faith,  and  to  the  Christ 
Himself,  is  now  commended  to  them. 

awe.  It  should  probably  be 
stronger,  "fear."  The  Greek  word 
is  used  generally,  though  not  always, 
of  physical  fear,  its  common  epithet 
in  Homer  being  "  pale."  It  is  a  word 
not  found  elsewhere  in  the  N.T.,  and 
this  fact,  and  possibly  the  desii-e  to 
soften  the  expression,  caused  the 
later  MSS  to  read,  instead  of  8(ovs, 
aldoi/i,    i.e.    "  shamefastness " :    see 


122  HEBREWS  [xiii.  1-6 

1    Tim.    ii.    9.    No    single    phrase  the  thankfulness  and  well-pleasing 

comprehends    all    aspects    of    the  service,  an  element  of  fear,  to  keep 

Christian  life ;  and  there  is  a  place  you  from  backsliding ;  for  to  us,  as 

in  the  most  filial  religion  for  fear.  was  said  to  our  ancestors  (Deut.  iv. 

The  writer  is  pressing  once  more  the  24),  God  is  a  consuming  fire,  a  jealous 

example  of  Israel  under  the  Old  God." 
Covenant:  "there  must  be,  in  all 

Introductory  Note  to  ch.  XIII. 

The  Epistle,  as  an  ordered  rhetorical  composition,  comes  to  its  appro- 
priate end  with  the  peroration  of  ch.  xii.  The  13th  chapter  is  more 
informal  in  style,  and  of  the  nature  of  a  postscript.  But  it  makes  some 
notable  additions  to  the  genei-al  purport  of  the  Epistle.  The  practical  pre- 
cepts which  it  contains  are  particular  enough  to  make  it  certain  that  we  see 
in  them  some  characteristics  of  the  commimity  to  which  it  is  addressed. 
Some  of  the  tendencies  suggested  in  the  "patchwork  of  strange  teachings" 
{v.  9),  i.e.  the  grafting  on  to  Christianity  of  Rabbinical  traditions  about  meats 
and  the  like,  belong  to  the  same  cycle  of  ideas  and  practices  as  the  angel  wor- 
ship possibly  hinted  at  in  the  earlier  chapters.  This  idea  of  halting  between 
two  irreconcileable  views,  of  eking  out  the  new  faith  with  heterogeneous 
additions,  dictates  the  fonn  and  substance  of  the  chapter.  It  is  the  key  to 
the  appeal  for  that  stability  which  would  come  from  thinking  of  the  un- 
changing Centre  of  their  religion,  "Jesus  Christ,  the  same  yesterday  and 
to-day,  yea  and  for  ever"  (».  8);  on  a  lower  level,  from  thinking  of  their  first 
teachers  and  predecessors  in  the  faith,  who  had  sealed  their  adherence  by 
their  death  (t-.  7);  from  thinking  of  their  present  leaders,  of  the  value  of 
obedience,  of  the  claims  of  the  community,  of  the  strength  which  comes  from 
sympathy,  common  worship,  mutual  charity  (w.  1-3,  15-17).  It  is  this  also 
that  leads  the  writer  to  take  a  step  beyond  the  position  to  which  in  the  body 
of  the  Epistle  he  has  limited  himself  Hitherto  he  has  been  content  to 
urge  them  not  to  fall  away  from  their  new  beUefs,  to  insist  that  in  the 
Christian  Dispensation  they  had  all  and  more  than  all  that  the  Law  had 
professed  to  give  them.  Now  for  the  first  time  we  hear  the  clear  call  to 
come  out  and  be  separate,  to  choose  once  for  all  between  Judaism  and 
Christianity  (p».  10-14). 

XIII.  1-6.    Postscript.    MoRAii  exhortations. 

XIII.     1,  2  Let  love  of  the  brethren  continue.     Forget  not 
to  shew  love  unto  strangers  :  for  thereby  some  have  enter- 

3  tained  angels  unawares.   Remember  them  that  are  in  bonds, 
as  bound  with  them ;  them  that  are  evil  entreated,  as  being 

4  yourselves  in  the  body.     Let  marriage  he  had  in  honour 
among  all,  and  let  the  bed  he  undefiled :  for  fornicators 

5  and  adulterers  God  will  judge.    ^Be  ye  free  from  the  love 


XIII.  1-6] 


HEBREWS 


123 


of  money  ;  content  with  such  things  as  ye  have :  for  himself 
hath  said,  I  will  in  no  wise  fail  thee,  neither  will  I  in  any 
6  wise  forsake  thee.     So  that  with  good  courage  we  say, 
The  Lord  is  my  helper ;  I  will  not  fear : 
What  shall  man  do  unto  me  ? 

^  Gr.  Let  your  turn  of  mind  be  free. 


XIII.  1.  love  of  the  brethren.  It 
is  in  Greek  a  single  word,  (/)tXa8fX0ta, 
and  in  the  next  clause  there  is  the 
corresponding  word,  ^iKo^fvia^  and 
each  has  the  definite  article,  the  mean- 
ing of  this  being  probably  "your  love, 
&c.,"  i.e.  the  love  which  has  been  re- 
cognized and  praised  before  (vi.  10, 
X.  34).  He  does  not  say  "let  it  be 
acquired  "  or  "  learn  it,"  but  "  let  it 
continue,"  "do  not  forget  it."  At 
the  same  time  the  form  implies  that 
in  the  present  circumstances,  in  the 
pressure  of  their  own  troubles,  there 
was  risk  of  selfishness  growing  upon 
them.  "  Love  of  the  brethren  "  (cp. 
Rom.  xii.  10 ;  1  Thess.  iv.  9  ;  1  Pet. 
i.  22),  i.e.  love  of  fellow-Christians,  as 
brothers  in  one  household,  was  to  be 
a  bridge  between  the  affection  of 
the  family  and  universal  love  or 
charity,  2  Pet.  i.  7.  It  is  expanded 
in  the  follovring  clause  in  two  practi- 
cal directions,  viz. :  to  include  readi- 
ness to  entertain  travellers,  and  sym- 
pathy with  those  who  are  imprisoned. 
In  both  cases  it  seems  to  be  im- 
plied that  they  are  fellow-Christians. 
Both  are  duties  which  were  traced 
to  the  Master^s  express  commands 
(Matt.  XXV.  35,  36,  cp.  id.  x.  41,  42). 
For  the  former  see  Rom.  xii.  13  ; 
1  Pet.  iv.  9  and  cp.  1  Tim,  v.  10; 
3  John  5,  6.  It  was  especially  looked 
for  in  "bishops,"  1  Tim.  iii.  2;  Tit.  i. 
8.  It  must  be  remembered  that  to 
Christians  the  need  of  such  enter- 
tainment was  greater  in  that  the 
natural  ties  of  kinship  and  friend- 
ship had  been  to  a  great  extent 


broken ;  and  that  without  it  mission- 
ary work  would  have  been  impossible 
(Acts  xxi.  16 ;  Rom.  xvi.  23).  St  John 
(2  John  10, 11)  suggests  a  limit  to  the 
claims  on  such  hospitality.  A  com- 
parison of  Clement  {ad  Cor.  i.  and 
XXXV.) shews  that  the  duty,  even  when 
welcomed  at  first,  was  apt,  as  feeling 
cooled,  to  grow  irksome. 

2.  some  have  entertained  angels ; 
with  special  reference,  no  doubt,  to 
Abraham  as  the  type  of  hospitality 
and  of  its  reward;  see  Gen.  xviii. 
Philo  {de  Abrahamo,  c.  xxii.)  dwells 
on  this  feature  of  the  story,  and 
speaks  of  his  "seeing  three  way- 
farers who  looked  like  men,  but  who, 
though  he  knew  it  not,  were  of  a 
more  Divine  nature."  The  same 
idea  is  found  in  Greek  legend,  as 
in  the  story  of  Baucis  and  Philemon 
(Ovid,  Met.  viii.  626  f. ;  cp.  Acts  xiv. 
11).  Cp.  the  argument  of  the  un- 
named suitor  who  is  shocked  at  the 
violence  of  Antinous  towards  the 
wanderer,  Hom.  Odyss.  xvii.  483 
(transl.  Worsley) : 

"Gods  in  the  garb  of  strangers  to 

and  fro 
Wander  the  cities  and  men's  ways 

discern,  &c." 

3.  them  that  are  in  bonds.  See 
on  ch.  X.  34. 

as  bound  with  them... as  being 
yourselves  in  the  body.  "  As  bound  " 
=  not  "as  if  you  were  bound,"  but 
"with  the  feeling  that  you  are 
bound,"  just  as  the  following  words 
mean  "  with  the  feeling  that  you  are 
yourselves  in  the  body."  The  two  ex- 


124 


HEBREWS 


[xiii.  1-6 


pressions,  though  distributed  in  form 
between  the  two  clauses,  belong  in 
meaning  (with  the  necessary  adapta- 
tion) both  to  each  clause.  The  first 
is  of  the  completeness  of  the  fellow- 
feeling  :  the  bonds  of  the  one  are  to 
be  felt  as  bonds  of  the  other :  it  is  like 
St  Paul's  "weep  with  them  that 
weep,"  Rom.  xii.  15,  "if  one  member 
suffereth  all  the  members  suffer  with 
it,"  1  Cor.  xii.  26,  cp.  the  use  of 
"suffer  hardship  with"  {o-vyKaKoira- 
6ri(Tov\  2  Tim.  i.  8,  ii.  3.  The  second 
is  of  the  natural  ground  of  sympathy, 
the  common  conditions,  viz.  the  com- 
mon humanity  and  the  common  ex- 
posure to  persecution. 

m  the  body.  For  the  phrase  cp. 
2  Cor.  V.  6. 

4.  [Let]  marriage  [be  had]  in 
honour.  There  is  no  verb  in  the 
Greek,  and  A.  V.  supplied"is"  instead 
of  "let. .  .be" ;  but  the  latter  is  shewn 
to  be  right  by  v.  5,  where  no  one  takes 
the  words  as  stating  facts.  A  similar 
omission  of  "let... be"  occurs  in  Rom. 
xii.  9.  It  is  possible  that  the  precept 
looks  not  merely  to  the  violation  of 
the  marriage  tie,  as  suggested  in  the 
following  words,  but  also  (as  included 
in  the  "strange  doctrines"  of  v.  9)  to 
some  ascetic  disparagement  of  it, 
such  as  that  named  in  similar  con- 
nexion in  1  Tim.  iv.  3,  "forbidding  to 
marry  and  commanding  to  abstain 
from  meats."  In  any  case  it  is  better 
probably  to  translate  the  second 
clause,  as  A.V.,  "and  the  bed  [pro- 
vided it  be]  undefiJed."  With  the 
command  to  hold  marriage  and  all 
that  belongs  to  it  "in  honour,"  cp. 


1  Thess.  iv.  4,  "in  sanctification  and 
honour,"  and  the  tone  of  Eph.  v.  25  f., 
especially  ».  32. 

amo?ig  all,  literally  "in  all,"  the 
substantive  being,  in  Greek  fashion, 
omitted.  It  is  difficiUt  to  decide 
what  the  substantive  supplied  should 
be,  whether  persons,  as  in  our  ver- 
sions, "among  all,"  i.e.  both  in  the 
judgement  of  the  wedded,  that  they 
observe  its  conditions  sacredly,  and 
in  the  judgement  of  others  who 
think  and  speak  of  it,  that  none 
disparage  it  or  treat  it  lightly;  or 
things  (as  Westcott),  i.e.  "in  all  re- 
spects." See  V.  18,  where  the  same 
phrase  is  rendered  "in  all  things." 

5.  love  of  money,  which,  St  Paul 
tells  us,  "is  a  root  of  all  kinds  of 
evil,"  1  Tim.  vi.  10.  There,  as  here, 
the  remedy  prescribed  for  it  is 
"contentment" 

himself  hath  said.  The  words 
occur  most  nearly  (they  are  there 
in  the  third  person,  Moses  nan-ating 
God's  promise  to  Israel  when  they 
are  about  to  cross  the  Jordan)  in 
Deut.  xxxi.  6.  It  is  an  appropriate 
promise  to  recall,  and  it  is  quite 
natural  in  recalling  it  to  turn  it  back 
into  the  first  person.  But  it  is  to  be 
noticed  that  Philo  quotes  the  words 
in  this  same  fonn,  which  has  sug- 
gested that  they  may  have  been 
preserved  so  in  some  hturgical  use. 

6.  we  say  (more  exact  than 
A. v.,  "we  may  say");  "we  repeat 
with  good  courage  the  confident 
words  of  the  familiar  Psalm,"  Ps. 
cxviii.  6. 


XIII.  7-9] 


HEBREWS 


125 


XIII.  7-9.    Consistency  of  doctrine. 

7  Remember  them  that  had  the  rule  over  you,  which  spake 
unto  you  the  word  of  God ;  and  considering  the  issue  of 

8  their  ^life,  imitate  their  faith.     Jesus  Christ  is  the  same 

9  yesterday  and  to-day,  yea  and  ^for  ever.  Be  not  carried 
away  by  divers  and  strange  teachings :  for  it  is  good  that 
the  heart  be  established  by  grace ;  not  by  meats,  wherein 
they  that  ^occupied  themselves  were  not  profited. 


1  Gr.  manner  of  life. 


-  Gr.  unto  the  ages. 


'  Gr.  tvalked. 


7.  them  that  had  tlie  rule  over 
you.  A.V.  reads  "them  which  have, 
&c."  The  change  made  in  R.V.  alters 
the  reference  of  the  sentence.  In 
A.V.  it  is  an  injunction  to  give  heed 
to  their  existing  rulers  as  those  who 
had  been  also  their  original  instruc- 
tors in  Christian  truth.  In  R.V.  it 
is  to  keep  in  memory  leaders  and 
teachers  who  have  passed  away. 
The  later  part  shews  that  the 
second  is  the  true  meaning.  The 
single  word  rendered  "that  had  (or, 
have) the  rule"  is  a  present  participle, 
which  takes  its  definite  time  ("who 
are  [or,  who  were]  ruling")  from  the 
general  piu-port  of  the  sentence.  In 
this  case  the  time  is  defined  by  the 
relative  clause,  "who  spoke  [A.V. 
wrongly,  'have  spoken']  the  word  of 
truth."  But  in  tnith  the  participle 
in  such  a  case  is  used  i-ather  as  a 
substantive,  "your  leaders."  Cp.  Acts 
XV.  22,  "It  seemed  good  to  the 
Apostles... to  send  Judas  and  Silas, 
chief  men  ('leading  men,'  it  is  the 
same  word)  among  the  brethren." 
The  phrase  reciu-s  in  vv.  17,  24.  In 
those  places  it  means  "your  present 
leaders,"  and  designates,  no  doubt, 
those  who  held  a  definite  position  as 
oflBcers  in  the  Christian  body,  but 
not  as  though  it  were  an  oflScial 


title.  The  same  general  term  is 
used  by  Clement  of  Rome  {ad 
Cor.  i.),  although  the  distinction  of 
orders  is  in  his  writings  clearly  de- 
veloped. Westcott  draws  attention 
to  the  absence  from  the  present 
Epistle  of  all  technical  terms  of 
Church  organization. 

issue.  The  Greek  word  is  not  a 
common  one,  but  it  occurs  in  Wisd. 
ii.  17,  "let  us  try  what  shall  befall 
in  the  ending  of  his  life,"  a  passage 
which  is  probably  in  the  writer's 
mind,  dealing,  as  it  does,  with  the 
same  subject,  viz.  the  lessons  to  be 
learnt  from  the  bearing  of  a  righteous 
man  in  the  face  of  persecution  and 
death. 

their  faith  :  "  their  "  represents 
the  Greek  def.  article  and  possibly 
the  meaning  is  "the  issue  [as  you 
have  seen  it  in  their  case]  of  the 
faith  which  we  have  just  been  de- 
scribing." 

8.  R.V.  has  made  the  construc- 
tion easy  by  inserting  the  verb  "is," 
which  is  certainly  implied  in  the 
Greek.  A.V.  seems  to  have  taken 
the  words  as  an  exclamation. 

yesterday  and  to-day,  "in  the 
past  and  in  the  present  age,  and  to 
the  most  distant  future."  Cp.  2  Cor. 
i.  19.    The  thought  is  a  link  between 


126 


HEBREWS 


[xiil.  10-14 


what  precedes  and  what  follows. 
Consistency  and  constancy  are  the 
subject  of  the  whole  passage,  vv.  7- 
10,  and  they  are  connected  with  the 
unchangeableness  of  Him  Who  is  the 
author  and  object  of  the  religion. 
The  unchangeableness  of  Christ  is 
the  ground  of  the  consistency  of  the 
martyrs'  lives,  which  are  held  up  as 
an  example,  and  it  leads  the  way  to 
the  thought  that  there  must  be  the 
same  consistency  and  the  same 
ground  for  it  in  the  teaching. 

9.  carried  away,  literally  "aside," 
as  by  a  current,  out  of  the  right 
course. 

divers.  The  word  loses  the  figure 
of  the  original  "many-coloured." 
Vaughan  points  out  that  it  is  the 
word  used  of  Joseph's  "coat  of 
many  colours."  The  thought  is  of 
a  "patchwork,"  the  mingling  of  Rab- 
binical, perhaps  Essene,  practices 
and  teaching  with  those  of  Christ. 

strange,  "alien,"  not  matching 
their  Christian  teaching  and  com- 
ing from  a  diflferent  source. 

that  the  heart  be  established,  i.e. 


"made  firm."  The  phrase  carries 
us  back  to  the  case  of  their  prede- 
cessors in  the  faith  (v.  7) :  that  con- 
sistency and  firmness  in  trial  was 
due  in  them  (and  will  be  due  in  you) 
to  "grace"  (the  writer  would  not 
distinguish  the  gracious  Will  of  God 
without  them  from  the  gracious  In- 
fluence acting  as  a  power  within 
them),  not  to  "things  to  be  eaten" 
(he  sums  up  in  one  contemptuous 
word  the  rival  system  of  seeking 
moral  strength  through  carnal  ordi- 
nances). It  is  the  same  contrast 
that  is  worked  out  more  fully  in 
oh.  ix.  9f. 

were  not  profited.  The  system  has 
been  tried  and  has  failed. 

they  that  occupied  themselves : 
literally  (as  margin)  "they  that 
walked,"  It  is  the  verb  so  fre- 
quent in  St  Paul,  but  which  only 
occurs  in  this  Epistle  here.  For  the 
special  use,  cp.  Acts  xxi.  21,  "to  walk 
after  the  customs" — of  ruling  their 
life  and  habits  by  special  customs  or 
laws. 


XIII.  10-14.    "We  have  an  altar." 

10  We  have  an  altar,  whereof  they  have  no  right  to  eat  which 

11  serve  the  tabernacle.    For  the  bodies  of  those  beasts,  whose 
blood  is  brought  into  the  holy  place  ^by  the  high  priest  as 

12  an  offering  for  sin,  are  burned  without  the  camp.   Where- 
fore Jesus  also,  that  he  might  sanctify  the  people  through 

13  his  own  blood,  suffered  without  the  gate.   Let  us  therefore 
go  forth  unto  him  without  the  camp,  bearing  his  reproach. 

14  For  we  have  not  here  an  abiding  city,  but  we  seek  after 
the  city  which  is  to  come. 


Gr.  through. 


XIII.  10-14]  HEBREWS  127 

General  Note  on  pp.  10-14. 

From  the  protest  in  v.  9  against  Judaistic  teaching  as  a  weakening  of 
their  Christian  position  and  a  betrayal  of  the  One  Unchangeable  Centre  of 
their  religion,  the  >\Titer  is  led  to  put,  with  a  clearness  which  he  has  not 
reached  before,  the  truth  that  Judaism  and  Christianity  are  incompatible. 
Their  opponents  are  right  in  their  sense  of  that.  They  must  choose  between 
the  two.  "  You  feel  excluded,"  he  says,  "from  the  sacrifices  of  your  country- 
men. Yes — but  you  have  a  sacrifice  from  which  they  are  excluded."  He 
goes  back  to  the  statement  of  their  privileges  as  Christians  as  they  were  set 
forth  in  chs.  ix.  and  x.  "  We  have  an  altar."  "  We  have — let  no  one  say  that 
we  have  not — all,  more  than  all,  the  comfort  and  strength  for  the  spiritual 
life  which  our  forefathei-s  found  in  their  sacrificial  system.  It  is  all  we  need, 
and  it  is  all  our  o^vn."  This  is  all  that  v.  10  can  mean  distinctly  to  .say.  No 
special  typical  sacrifice  is  at  the  moment  in  view.  Many  of  the  sacrifices 
imder  the  Law  were  eaten  by  the  Priests.  It  was  generally  part  of  the 
symbolism  of  reconciliation  and  commimion.  St  Paul,  in  1  Cor.  x.,  applies 
the  figure  to  the  Christian  Feast  upon  the  Sacrifice.  It  is  probable  that  a 
similar  apphcation  is  in  the  backgi-ound  here.  But  in  any  case  the  figure  is 
a  natural  one  by  which  to  say  that  the  comfort  and  coranmnion  of  the 
Christian  Sacrifice  were  not  for  those  who  busied  themselves  still  with  the 
typical  and  superseded  sacrifices  of  the  earthly  Tabernacle. 

But  meantime  another  figure  strikes  the  writer.  Certain  sin-oflFeriugs, 
and  amongst  them  the  sacrifice  offered  on  the  Day  of  Atonement,  were 
excluded  from  the  list  of  offerings  of  which  the  Priest  was  to  eat.  They 
were  to  be  wholly  burnt  (Lev.  vi.  30,  x^i.  27),  and  for  this  pm-pose  they  were 
to  be  carried  "  outside  the  camp."  And  the  Christian  Sacrifice  was  such  a 
sin-offering.  And  so  Christ  had  fulfilled  the  type  in  suffering  (Uterally  and 
metaphorically)  "without  the  gate,"  as  though  He  was  cast  out  from  the  sacred 
city,  excommunicated  by  Priests  and  people.  His  followers  must  have  the 
spirit  to  take  their  place  by  His  side. 

10.     We  have  an  altar.    The  em-  side  the  camp  and  burnt."    It  seems 

phasis  in  the  Greek  is  on  the  verb,  to  us  natural,  almost  inevitable,  to 

"we  have  an  altar,"  i.e.  we  are  not,  complete  the  figured   contrast   by 

as  non-Christian  Jews  assert  of  us,  adding  that,  as  Christians,  we  have 

without  an  altar,  and  all   that  it  in  Sacramental  symbol  that  power 

means  to  the  conscience — "an  altar,"  to  eat  of  the  sin-offering,  which  was 

he  goes  on,  "  in  respect  of  which,  by  denied  to  the  Jew ;  but  though  this 

the  very  tenns  of  their  own  typical  can  hardly  but  have  been   in  the 

Law,  those  who  still  worship  in  the  writer's  mind,  he  does  not  cairy  his 

Tabernacle  cannot  claim  the  full  sign  readers  so  far.     The  earlier  part  of 

of  acceptance  and  communion,  for  the  the  typical  figure  psisses  out  of  sight, 

Sacrifice  is  just  one  of  those  sin-  and  he  dwells  only  on  the  resem- 

offerings  which  were  specifically  ex-  blance  between  the  burning  of  the 

cepted  from  the  general  rule  that  sin-offering  "without  the  camp"  and 

the  priest  should  eat  the  flesh  of  the  suffering  of  Jesus  "without  the 

the  victim ;  it  was  to  be  carried  out-  gate." 


128 


HEBREWS 


[XIII.  15-17 


II.  those  beasts  whose  blood  is 
brought.  This  is  the  definition  in 
Lev.  vi.  30,  "No  sin-oflFering,  whereof 
any  of  the  blood  is  brought  into  the 
tent  of  meeting  to  make  atonement 
in  the  holy  place,  shall  be  eaten  :  it 
shall  be  burnt  with  fire."  Cp.  ibid.  iv. 
7, 12, 18,  21,  of  sin-oflFerings  on  behalf 
of  the  priest  himself  or  of  the  con- 
gregation, and  xvi.  27,  where  the 
same  is  prescribed  for  the  sin-oflFer- 
ings  on  the  Day  of  Atonement. 

by.  ^'^Gr.  through."  "The  use  of 
the  preposition  (8ia)  'through,' 
where  we  might  have  expected 
(vTTo)  'by,'  is  of  interest.  The 
High  Priest  is  the  agent  through 
whom  the  act  of  the  people  is  ac- 
complished " — Westcott. 

without  the  camp.  They  are  the 
words  of  Leviticus,  but  they  remind 
us  of  what  has  been  noticed  before, 
that  the  language  throughout  is  of 
the  Tabernacle  in  the  wilderness,  not 
of  the  contemporary  Temple  services. 
Harnack,  who  is  concerned  to  press 
the  hortative  as  against  the  doctrinal 
bearing  of  the  Epistle,  interprets 
"camp"  as  meaning  not  Judaism  but 


the  world:  but  this  can  hardly  be 
right. 

12.  Where/ore,  i.e.  so  as  to  fulfil 
the  type. 

sanctify:  i.e.  as  a  sin-ofi'ering  re- 
stored the  person  for  whom  it  was 
made  to  his  place  as  one  of  the  con- 
secrated people. 

13.  his  reproach,  i.e.  the  reproach 
that  He  bore.  See  on  xi.  26,  "The 
reproach  of  Christ."  The  writer 
calls  his  readers  to  take  their  place 
manfully  as  Christians,  facing  the 
obloquy  which  it  involves,  and  the 
excommunication  from  the  Church 
of  Judaism. 

14.  The  verse  in  both  its  clauses 
takes  us  back  to  ch.  xi.  10  and  16. 
The  reason  why  they  should  face 
vdth  readiness  what  seems  like  ex- 
patriation is  that,  like  their  faithful 
forefathers,  they  sit  loose  to  earthly 
ties;  they  are  looking  not  to  any 
visible  city  as  though  it  were  a  per- 
manent home,  but  to  "the  one  which 
is  to  be,"  the  "city  which  hath 
foundations."  They  are  at  present 
"sojourners  and  pilgrims,"  1  Pet.  ii. 
11. 


XIII.  15-17.    The  sacrifices  of  the  Christian 
Dispensation. 

15  Through  him  Hhen  let  us  offer  up  a  sacrifice  of  praise  to 
God  continually,  that  is,  the  fruit  of  lips  which  make  con- 

16  fession  unto  his  name.  But  to  do  good  and  to  communicate 
forget  not:  for  with  such  sacrifices  God  is  well  pleased. 

17  Obey  them  that  have  the  rule  over  you,  and  submit  to  them : 
for  they  watch  in  behalf  of  your  souls,  as  they  that  shall 
give  account ;  that  they  may  do  this  with  joy,  and  not  with 
^grief ;  for  this  were  unprofitable  for  you. 

^  Some  ancient  authorities  omit  then,  ^  Gr.  groaning. 


15.  Through  him  then.  It  takes 
us  back  to  ».  12:  "we  have  an  altar, 
a  sacrificial  system,  all  our  own,  of 


which  Jesus  is  the  High  Priest 
Through  Him  (for  the  meaning  of 
"through"  see  note  on  v.  11,  "by"). 


XIII.  15-17] 


HEBREWS 


129 


then  (that  is,  since  we  have  parted 
once  for  all  from  the  inefifectual 
Levitical  system),  let  us  offer  our 
sacrifices."  The  sacrifice  chosen  is 
the  thank-offering.  It  is  implied 
that  the  sacrifice  of  propitiation  has 
been  already  offered  and  accepted  : 
all  that  remains  is  the  giving  of 
thanks,  of  which  there  is  to  be  no 
break  or  end  ("continually"). 

sacrifice  of  praise.  The  phrase 
used  is  the  technical  one  for  the 
thank-offering  of  the  Levitical  Law 
(Lev.  vii.  12,  &c.).  It  had  already 
had  a  spiritual  sense  put  upon  it  in 
the  Psalms,  sis  1.  23,  "the  sacrifice  of 
thanksgiving"  (R.V.),  and  cvii.  22. 
The  phrase  is  adopted  and  applied 
in  our  Liturgy  ("this  our  sacrifice  of 
praise  and  thanksgiving")  to  the 
Holy  Eucharist  as  a  supreme  oflice 
of  thanksgiving  {(vxapi.(nia\  as  "to 
do  good,  &c."  (p.  15),  is  made  one  of 
the  offertory  sentences  which  call  us 
to  giving  "alms  and  oblations"  as 
part  of  the  Bucharistic  offering. 

fruit  of  lips;  "not  the  produce  of 
land  or  flock,  but  of  thankful  heart 
and  hps."  It  is  a  phrase  of  the  O.T., 
Isaiah  Ivii.  19,  Hos.  xiv.  2,  LXX  (our 
versions,  directly  from  the  Hebrew, 
have  "  the  calves  of  our  lips,"  A.V. ; 
"«*  bullocks  the  offering  oy' our  lips," 
R.V.).  The  origin  of  the  figure  is  in 
such  passages  as  Ps.  h.  15-17. 

confession;  in  the  sense  of  "ac- 
knowledgement." To  make  "acknow- 
ledgement to  God's  name"  is  to 
acknowledge  with  thankfulness  that 
He  is  what  He  has  revealed  Himself 
to  be. 

16.  to  communicate;  more  siva^Xy., 
"to  share,"  to  share  with  others  any 
good  things  that  we  have  ourselves. 

forget  not.  The  form,  as  in  v.  2, 
" Forget  not,"  and  in  ».  I,  "  Let  love. . . 


continue"  (see  note  on  v.  1),  implies 
that  they  have  not  to  learn  the  virtue, 
but  to  continue  its  practice  (see  ch. 
vi.  10). 

with  such  sacrifices ;  more  exactly, 
"such  are  the  sacrifices  with  which." 
They  include  probably  both  the  thank- 
ful hearts  of  w.  15  and  the  kindly  acts 
of  V.  16.  Kind  action  and  generous 
giving  are  spoken  of  as  a  "sacrifice 
acceptable,  well-pleasing  to  God"  in 
Phil.  iv.  18. 

1 7.  them  that  have  the  ride.  Their 
present,  as  in  v.  7,  their  past, 
leaders.  For  the  meaning  of  the 
phrase  see  note  there. 

obey... submit.  The  two  words 
together  emphasize  the  precept  of 
deference  and  discipline,  but  their 
exact  distinction  is  not  certain.  The 
second  is  the  stronger,  so  that  it 
is  perhaps  "obey  even  if  it  involves 
submission  of  your  own  will." 

watch.,  literally  "are  sleepless."  It 
is  the  word  used  in  Mark  xiii.  33, 
'■'■watch  and  pray,"  as  in  Ps.  cxxvii.  1, 
"Except  the  Lord  keep  the  city  the 
watchman  waketh  but  in  vain  "  Note 
also  that  the  figure  of  a  watchman  in 
spiritual  matters  is  familiar  in  the 
Old  Testament,  as  Isaiah  Ivi.  10,  &c. 

do  this;  i.e.,  probably,  give  ac- 
count. But  it  has  also  been  taken 
of  the  watching. 

with  gri^.  As  the  margin  notices, 
it  is  a  strong  word,  "groaning," 
"with  lamentation" — a  rhetorical 
substitution  in  order  to  emphasize 
the  serious  mischief  of  self-will  and 
indiscipline  in  the  Church. 

utipr(fitable;  according  to  a  fa- 
miliar classical  idiom,  a  milder  word 
is  substituted  by  a  kiud  of  irony  for- 
the  stronger  one  intended,  the  true 
meaning  being  "disastrous." 


130 


HEBREWS 


[xiii.  18,  19 


XIII.  18,  19.    "Pray  for  us." 

18  Pray  for  us:  for  we  are  persuaded  that  we  have  a  good 

19  conscience,  desiring  to  live  honestly  in  all  things.  And 
I  exhort  you  the  more  exceedingly  to  do  this,  that  I 
may  be  restored  to  you  the  sooner. 


18.  Pray  for  us.  It  is  literally 
"about  us,"  as  in  1  Thess.  v.  25  and  in 
other  places ;  and  is  analogous  to  St 
Paul's  expression  (Rom.  i.  9,  &c.), 
"make  mention  of  [us]  in  prayers." 

us... we.  The  question  is  raised 
whether  the  "us"  and  "we"  of  v.  18, 
as  compared  with  the  "I  may  be  re- 
stored" of  V.  19,  are  an  instance  of 
what  has  been  called  the  "epistolary 
plural,"  or  whether  they  are  intended 
to  associate  other  persons  with  the 
writer.  It  is  a  familiar  question  in 
respect  of  St  Paul's  Epistles.  See, 
for  instance,  Col.  iv.  3,  4,  "praying 
for  us  that  God  may  open  imto  us  a 
door  for  the  word,  to  speak  the 
mystery  of  Christ,  for  which  also  I 
am  in  bonds,  that  I  may  make  it 
manifest,  &c."  Lightfoot,  on  that 
passage,  denies  that  there  is  any 
reason  to  suppose  that  St  Paul  ever 
uses  the  "epistolary  plural,''  and 
takes  it  and  all  plurals  like  it  of 
himself  and  his  companions  in  the 
preaching  of  the  Gospel. 

we  are  persuaded.,  A.V.  "we  trust." 
The  alteration  is  made  because  of  an 
alteration  in  the  reading  in  the  Greek, 
a  present  tense,  middle  or  passive,  in- 
stead of  an  intransitive  perfect.  It 
would  perhaps  be  better  translated 


"we  persuade  ourselves,"  i.e.  "we 
would  fain  believe."  It  is  a  more 
measured  and  hesitating  statement 
than  "we  trust."  There  is  in  it  a 
tone  of  appeal,  as  though  he  said 
"Think  the  best  of  us."  See  the 
next  note. 

a  good  conscience. .  .to  live  honestly. 
We  lose  something  from  the  diflBculty 
of  indicating  in  the  translation  that 
"good"  and  "honestly"  are  the  cog- 
nate adjective  and  adverb  {koKtiv, 
KoXaJf).  In  both  cases  (as  Westcott 
points  out)  there  is  the  characteristic 
sense  of  *caXoy,  as  describing  "that 
which  commands  the  respect  and 
admiration  of  others."  The  writer 
desires  not  only  to  satisfy  his  own 
conscience  but  to  carry  the  approval 
of  those  to  whom  he  writes.  The 
tone  implies,  what  seems  to  be  im- 
phed  in  v.  19,  that  he  has  lived 
among  them  or  been  well-known  to 
them.  It  seems  to  imply  also  that, ' 
perhaps  on  accoimt  of  his  attitude 
towards  the  Jewish  Law,  he  has  been 
criticized  adversely  and,  as  he  thinks, 
unfairly. 

19.  restored.  He  is  kept  from 
them  at  the  moment,  but  how  it 
cannot  be  guessed. 


xiii.  20,  21]  HEBREWS  131 


XIII.  20,  21.    The  writer's  prayer. 

20  Now  the  God  of  peace,  who  brought  again  ft-om  the  dead  the 
great  shepherd  of  the  sheep  Mvith  the  blood  of  the  eternal 

21  covenant,  even  our  Lord  Jesus,  make  you  perfect  in  every 
good  ^thing  to  do  his  wiW,  working  in  ^us  that  which  is  well- 
pleasing  in  his  sight,  through  Jesus  Christ ;  to  whom  he  the 
glory  for  *ever  and  ever.     Amen. 

1  Or,  by     Gr.  in.  *  Many  ancient  authorities  read  work. 

^  Many  ancient  authorities  read  you.        *  Gr.  unto  the  age$  of  the  ages. 

General  Note  on  vv.  20,  21. 

This  benediction,  the  second  ending  of  the  Epistle,  is  meant  to  recall  and 
give  final  expression  to  many  of  the  topics.  It  begins  with  peace^  after 
the  suggestions  of  dissension,  despondency,  and  distress  with  which  it  has 
abounded.  The  framework  is  given  by  two  passages  in  the  O.T.,  viz.  Zech.  ix. 
11,  "Because  of  the  blood  of  thy  covenant  I  have  sent  forth  thy  pnsoners 
out  of  the  pit  wherein  is  no  water,"  and  Isaiah  Ixiii.  11,"  Then  he  remembered 
the  days  of  old,  Moses  and  his  people,  saying :  Where  is  he  that  brought 
them  up  out  of  the  sea  with  the  shepherds  {v. I.  shepherd)  of  his  flock?"  (the 
LXX  has  "  he  that  brought  up  out  of  the  sea  the  shepherd  of  the  sheep  ? "). 
There  is  the  presentation  of  Jesus  as  the  centre  and  source  of  all  Christian 
believing  and  living ;  and  so  also  as  the  fulfilment  of  all  types,  both  in  the 
sacred  history  and  in  the  rites  of  the  Law.  He  is  once  more  the  greater 
Moses,  delivered  with  His  people  from  death  as  Moses  and  Israel  from  "the 
sea."  (The  Resurrection  has  not  been  mentioned  before  in  word  in  the 
Epistle:  it  is  swallowed  up  generally  in  the  Ascension:  but  it  and  the 
deUverance  which  it  wrought  are  latent  in  the  argument  of  ch.  ii.  14, 1 5.)  And 
there  is  once  more  the  association  of  the  deUverance  with  the  High 
Priestly  work  of  atonement,  the  "  blood  of  the  Covenant,"  the  better,  the 
eternal,  Covenant. 

There  is  perhaps  one  more  thought,  suggesting  or  suggested  by  the 
passage  of  Isaiah,  in  the  title  for  our  Lord,  "  the  Shepherd,  the  great  one." 
It  is  like  the  "Chief  Shepherd"  of  1  Pet.  v.  4,  and,  like  that  phrase,  may  bo 
meant  to  carry  with  it  the  thought  of  the  under-shepherds— the  "watch- 
men" of  V.  17,  whose  claims  he  has  been  pressing  on  their  flock.  In  this 
single  title  he  reminds  his  readers  on  Whose  behalf  they  advance  the 
claims. 

20.  the  God  of  peace.  Peace  is  force  and  emphasis  when  the  pre- 
commonly  part  of  the  concluding,  as  ceding  Epistle  has  dealt  in  rebuke  or 
of  the  opening,  words  of  an  Apostolic  has  revealed  dissension,  as  in  2  Cor. 
Epistle  (1  Pet.  i.  2,  v.  14;  2  John  3;  xiii.  11,  Gal.  vi.  16,  and  inthispUice. 
3  John  14).     It  comes  with  special      The  phrase,   "the  God  of  peace," 

9—2 


132 


HEBREWS 


[xiii.  20,  21 


is  found  frequently  in  St  Paul's 
Epistles  (Rom.  xv.  33,  xvi.  20; 
2  Cor.  I.e.;  Phil.  iv.  9;  1  Thess.  v. 
23,  "the  Lord  of  peace  himself  give 
you  peace";  2  Thess.  iii.  11)  asso- 
ciating "peace"  with  the  Name  of 
God  as  belonging  to  His  Nature,  or 
as  that  which  He  loves,  or  as  His 
special  gift. 

the  great  shepherd.  It  is  more 
emphatic  in  the  Greek,  "the  shep- 
herd . . .  the  great  one."  With  the  use 
of  "great"  cp.  the  "great  high  priest" 
of  ch.  iv.  14,  and  "great  priest"  of  x. 
21.  He  is  a  second  Moses,  but  "of 
more  glory  than  Moses,"  iii.  3. 

with  the  blood.  The  Greek  is  "in," 
i.e.  "in  virtue  of";  cp.  ix.  25,  x.  19. 
Vaughan  translates  "with  the  pass- 
port of"  He  points  out  that  the 
Blood  of  the  availing  Sacrifice  has 
already  been  spoken  of  as  giving  ad- 
mission to  the  Divine  Presence :  what 
is  new  here  is  that  it  is  spoken  of  as 
also  giving  egress  from  death. 

the  eternal  covenant,  rather  "an 
eternal  covenant."  It  recalls  the 
whole  argument  of  ch.  ix.  1 1  foU. 

21.  make  you  perfect;  not  the 
verb  used  in  iii.  10,  x.  1,  14,  xii.  23, 
but  the  one  used  in  1  Pet.  v.  10 
("perfect"),  Luke  vi.  40  ("perfected"), 
1  Cor.  i.  10,  2  Cor.  xiii.  11,  Gal.  vi.  1 
("restore"),  and  in  this  Epistle  x.  5 
("prepare"),  xi.  3  ("framed").  It 
"includes  the  thoughts  of  the  har- 
monious combination  of  different 
powers  (Eph.  iv.  12),  of  the  supply 
of  what  is  defective  (1  Thess.  iii.  10), 
and  of  the  amendment  of  that  which 
is  faulty"  (Westcott). 


to  do... working.  The  Greek  has 
the  same  verb  in  the  two  clauses, 
which  draws  attention  to  the  double 
view  of  such  actions  as  at  once  our 
own,  and  not  our  own,  but  God's. 
Cp.  Phil.  ii.  12,  13,  "work  out  your 
own  salvation... for  it  is  God  that 
worketh  in  you  both  to  will  and  to 
work":  in  that  place  R.V.  has  kept 
the  same  verb  throughout. 

in  us.  The  Sinaitic  MS  has  "in 
us,"  the  Alexandrian  "in  you."  The 
latter  is  the  simpler,  but  the  change 
from  the  second  person  to  the  first 
in  such  cases  is  common  and  natural. 

through  Jesus  Christ.  It  may  be 
doubted  whether  these  words  are 
best  taken  with  "make  you  perfect," 
or  with  "working  in  us,"  or  with 
"weU-pleasing  in  his  sight."  Per- 
haps, as  at  the  end  of  a  prayer,  they 
qualify  the  whole  process  which  has 
been  set  forth. 

to  whom  \be'\  the  glory.  Cp.  Gal.  iii. 
5  (with  Lightfoot's  note)  and  1  Pet. 
iv.  1 1  (with  Bigg's  note).  The  result 
will  probably  be  to  convince  us 
(1)  that  it  is  of  the  nature  of 
a  formula  as  from  an  incipient 
liturgy;  the  "Amen"  indicates  this. 
Cp.  the  Doxology  added  to  the  Lord's 
Prayer;  "the  glory "  =  "glory,  as  al- 
ways"; (2)  that  the  verb  to  be  sup-, 
plied  is  is,  rather  than  he ;  (3)  that 
in  this  place,  as  in  1  Pet.  iv.  11,  the 
ascription  is  to  the  Divine  Person 
named  last,  the  Son.  There  is  a 
special  appropriateness  in  this  final 
tribute  to  Him  whose  Person  and 
work  it  has  been  the  chief  purpose 
of  the  Epistle  to  set  forth. 


XIIL  22-25] 


HEBREWS 


133 


XIII .  22-25.    Last  words  and  salutations. 

22  But  I  exhort  you,  brethren,  bear  with  the  word  of  exhorta- 

23  tion ;  for  I  have  written  unto  you  in  few  words.  Know  ye 
that  our  brother  Timothy  hath  been  set  at  liberty;  with 

24  whom,  if  he  come  shortly,  I  will  see  you.  Salute  all  them 
that  have  the  rule  over  you,  and  all  the  saints.  They  of 
Italy  salute  you. 

25  Grace  be  with  you  all.    Amen. 


22.  But.  The  particle  breaks  off 
the  previous  train  of  thought  in 
order  to  meet  a  fear  that  occurs  to 
him. 

brethren.  See  note  on  x.  19  as  to 
the  places  in  which  the  writer  uses 
this  address. 

hear  with.  It  is  the  same  verb  as 
in  2  Tim.  iv.  3,  "will  not  endure 
[wholesome  teaching]." 

word  of  exhortation.  The  phrase 
occurs  in  Acts  xiii.  15.  For  the 
shade  of  meaning  of  "exhortation" 
see  note  on  ch.  xii.  5. 

for  I  have  written.  Is  this  a 
reason  for  his  apologizing,  or  the 
apology  itself?  In  the  first  case  it 
is,  "I  exhort  you  to  bear... for  I 
have  had  to  omit  much  which  might 
have  put  my  case  better."  In  the 
second,  "for  I  have  tried  not  to 
weary  you,"  "I  stop  for  your  sake, 
not  because  my  arguments  are  ex- 
hausted." In  any  case,  the  repeti- 
tion of  the  word  "exhort... exhorta- 
tion," seems  almost  playful,  "Let  me 
finish  my  exhortation  by  exhorting 
you  to  be  patient  with  it." 

23.  our  brother  Timothy.  Two 
uses  of  the  word  "brother"  seem  to 
be  distinguished:  (1)  simply  as  a 
title,  "the  member  of  the  Christian 
brotherhood,"  much  as  in  the  French 


Revolution  "citizen"  became  a  title. 
This  is  frequent  in  St  Paul's  Epistles, 
of  Timothy,  Sosthenes,  Quartus,  &c. ; 
as  1  Cor.  i.  1,  "Paul  called  to  be  an 
Apostle.  ..and  Sosthenes  our  (Gr.  the) 
brother."  That  it  is  not  found  in  the 
Epistles  of  other  writers  is  due  prob- 
ably to  the  fact  that  they  have  not 
the  personal  opening  and  ending 
which  his  have ;  (2)  with  the  addi- 
tion of  a  personal  pronoun  in  the 
genitive  case,  "my  brother,"  "your 
brother,"  &c.— often  also  with  a 
second  descriptive  designation,  as 
Phil.  ii.  25,  "Epaphroditus  my  {(lov) 
brother  and  fellow-worker  and  fellow- 
soldier."  This  is  the  use  here,  for  in 
the  best  text  the  pronoun  "our,"  "of 
us,"  is  present.  It  expresses  there- 
fore some  common  interest  of  an 
affectionate  kind  as  between  Timothy 
and  the  writer  and  readers  of  the 
Epistle. 

set  at  liberty.  The  word  is  a 
general  one,  covering  release  or 
dismissal  of  any  kind,  and  there  is 
nothing  further  to  interpret  it. 

shortly;  literally  "at  all  speedily." 

24.  them  that  have  the  rule.  See 
on  verses  7  and  17. 

They  of  Italy.  This,  again,  is  an 
ambiguous  phrase.  A  person  writ- 
ing from  Italy  woiUd  use  it,  meaning 


134 


HEBREWS 


[xiii.  22-25 


"those  who  are  here  in  Italy,"  a 
person  writing  to  Italy  would  use 
it,  meaning  "those  here  who  belong  to 
Italy,"  and,  again,  a  person  writing 
from  any  place  to  any  place  might 
say  "our  friends  from  Italy,"  mean- 
ing thereby  some  persons  who  by 
that  title  will  be  recognized  by  the 
recipients  of  the  letter.  It  therefore 
gives  no  certain  indication  of  the 


position  of  the  writer  or  the  destina- 
tion of  the  Epistle. 

25.  Grace.  It  is  in  the  Greek  "the 
grace,"  as  in  Eph.  vi.  24;  Col.  iv.  18; 
1  Tim.  vi.  21 ;  2  Tim.  iv.  22;  Tit.  iii. 
15.  The  article  implies  that  the 
phrase  had  become  an  habitual  one. 
It  seems  to  be  interpreted  by  St 
Paul's  earlier  use  "  The  Grace  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ." 


APPENDIX    1. 

THE  GOSPEL  TRADITION  IN  THE  EPISTLE. 

Addressed  to  those  who  were  at  once  Jews  and  Christians,  the  Epistle 
evidently  assumes,  as  behind  it  in  the  minds  of  writer  and  readers,  the 
sacred  history  of  the  Old  Testament^the  outlines  of  its  narrative  its 
estimates  of  persons  and  events,  its  prophecies.  How  far  has  it  also  behind 
it  the  traditions  which  were,  already  or  afterwards,  embodied  m  any  of  the 
four  Gospels? 

With  respect  to  the  Life  of  our  Lord  we  find  enough  to  assure  us  that 
a  knowledge  of  the  general  story,  as  we  have  it,  was  assumed  between  the 
writer  and  those  to  whom  he  wrote. 
The  definite  references  are  to : 

Tlie  Birth.  "Our  Lord  hath  sprung  out  of  Judah,"  vii.  U.  The  meeting 
in  Him  of  the  Divine  and  Human  Natures  is  of  the  essence  of  the  argument 
of  the  Epistle :  "Jesus,  the  Son  of  God"  (iv.  14).  The  reaUty  of  each  Nature 
is  insisted  upon  (i.  1-3,  ii.  13,  14). 

Preaching  (ii.  3).  x     r  xv,     +  •  i 

Temptation  (ii.  18,  iv.  15);  but  probably  rather  m  respect  of  the  trial 

through  sufferings  (Luke  xxii.  28)  than  of  the  story  of  the  Temptation  in 

Matt,  iv.,  Luke  iv.  ,     ,       x  i.  + 

Gethsemane  (v.  7).  The  phrases  generaUy  carry  us  back  not  so  ^^ch  ^« 
the  Gospel  narrative  as  to  the  prophetic  picture  of  Ps.  xxu.,  but  him  that 
was  able  to  save  him  from  death"  and  "for  his  godly  fear,"  though  not 
verbally  reminiscent  of  the  Gospels,  can  hanUy  but  have  some  reference  to 
the  prayer,  "all  things  are  possible  to  Thee,"  "let  this  cup  pass  from  Me,  and 
the  saving  clause,  "not  My  will  but  Thine." 

The  Crucifixion.     Besides  the  many  references  to  the  "Blood    and  the 

"offering  of  the  Body,"  there  is  definite  mention  of  the  Cross  m  ^n.  6,  xn.  2, 

and  of  the  locality,  "without  the  gate,"  xiii.  12.  ,   ,     ,  ,  ,    _  .  •„ 

The  rending  of  the  Veil  (x.  20).     The  reference  is  not  absolutely  certain, 

but  it  explains  the  figure  in  that  place  as  nothing  else  doe.s. 

The  Resurrection  does  not  occupy  as  much  place  m  this  Epistle  as  m 
many  others,  because  it  is  thrown  somewhat  into  the  backgrouiul  by  the 
prominence  of  the  Ascension,  but  it  is  implied  in  v.  7,  "to  save  him  from  (i.e. 
out  of)  death,  and  was  h^ard:'    It  is  implied  (as  Westcott  points  out)  more 


136  HEBREWS 

largely  in  the  assumption  throughout  the  Epistle  of  the  permanence  of 
Christ's  perfect  humanity  through  death.  It  is  definitely  spoken  of  only  in 
xiii.  20. 

The  Ascension  (iv.  14).  When  the  clue  is  given,  that  the  writer  sees  in 
the  Ascension  the  antitype  (wholly  or  in  part)  of  the  High  Priest's  entrance 
into  the  Holy  of  Holies  with  the  Blood  of  Atonement,  we  see  the  thought  of 
it  as  permeating  much  of  the  Epistle. 

The  gifts  of  the  Spirit  (ii.  4). 

The  expected  Return  to  Judgement  (ix.  28). 

"We  may  add  to  these  two  possible  references  to  the  institution  of  the 
Lords  Supper : 

(1)  In  the  phrase  "a  remembrance  of  sins"  (x.  3). 

(2)  In  "this  is  the  blood  of  the  Covenant"  (ix.  20). 
See  the  notes  on  those  two  passages  and  also  App.  ii. 

In  addition  to  these  references,  more  or  less  clear,  to  points  in  the 
Gospel  story,  there  are  some  less  certain  echoes  of  ideas,  sayings,  and  phrases 
which  found  place  in  one  or  more  of  the  Gospels.     Such  are  : 

(a)  The  application,  throughout  the  Epistle,  to  the  Ceremonial  Law  of 
the  principle  enunciated  in  Matt.  v.  17,  that  Christ  came  "not  to  destroy 
but  to  fulfil." 

(b)  Apparent  reminiscences  of  three  of  the  Beatitudes.  See  notes  on 
xi.  26,  xii.  14. 

(c)  The  aspect  of  the  suflFerings  of  Christ  as  in  themselves  glorious  and  in 
accordance  with  the  fitness  of  things  (ii.  10;  cp.  Luke  xxiv.  16),  and  yet,  as 
is  implied  in  much  of  the  argument  of  the  Epistle,  and  as  is  put  into  words 
in  John  xii.  34,  something  that  to  the  Jews  required  apology. 

(d)  The  use  of  quotations  which  are  represented  in  the  Gospels  as 
having  been  frequently  on  our  Lord's  lips,  as  the  words  of  Ps.  ex.,  "Sit  thou 
on  my  right  hand,"  which  plays  such  a  large  part  in  the  Epistle :  cp.  Matt. 
xxii.  44;  Luke  xxii.  69;  cp.  also  Mark  xvi.  19. 

(e)  Such  also  perhaps  is  the  phrase  "to  bear  the  sins  of  many"  which 
comes  originally  from  Isaiah  lui.  12.  Cp.  Heb.  vii.  28  with  Matt.  xx.  28, 
xxvi.  28. 

(J)  "God  is  not  unrighteous  to  forget  your  work,  &c.,"  vi.  10,  seems  to 
rest  on  such  assurances  as  Matt.  x.  42. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  that  there  are  some  parallels  in  thought  and  expres- 
sion between  the  Epistle  and  St  John's  Gospel,  as 

(a)  Though  there  is  no  identity  of  phrase  or  appearance  of  borrowing  by 
one  or  the  other,  the  Logos  doctrine  of  i.  1-3. 

The  whole  doctrine  of  Christ  as  the  Revelation  of  the  Father  (i.  2),  the 
"very  image,"  the  "effulgence"  (for  "God  is  Light,"  1  John  i.  5),  is  antici- 
pated or  summed  up  in  the  words  attributed  to  the  Lord  Himself  (John 
xiv.  9),  "he  that  hath  seen  Me  hath  seen  the  Father." 

(&)    The  description  of  the  Incarnation,  ii.  14;  John  i.  14. 

(c)  The  presentation  of  Christ  as  the  High  Priest  of  humanity.  Cp.  John 
xvii.,  esp.  rp.  17-19. 

(d)  The  comparison  of  the  Son  and  the  servant,  iii.  5,  6  ;  John  viii.  35. 

(e)  "He  glorified  not  himself,"  v.  5;  cp.  John  viii.  54. 


APPENDIX  137 

It  is  also  of  interest  to  observe,  however  it  be  explained,  that  there 
occur  two  rather  close  parallelisms  with  the  last,  and  disputed,  verses  of  St 
Mark.  See  Mark  xvi.  19,  "Sat  down  on  the  right  hand  of  God,"  the  phrase 
being  used,  as  in  the  Epistle,  of  the  Ascension,  and  id.  xvi.  20  as  compared 
with  Heb.  ii.  4. 


APPENDIX    II. 

THE  TWO  SACRAMENTS  IN  THE  EPISTLE. 

The  position  of  the  two  Sacraments  in  the  Epistle  is  noticeable  and 
points  to  a  general  characteristic  of  the  writer's  purpose. 

On  the  one  side,  one  cannot  read  the  Epistle  without  perceiving 
that  they  were  within  the  writer's  consciousness  as  part  of  the  historical 
tradition  and  part  of  the  actual  Christian  life,  and  that  their  existence 
would  give  point  to  what  he  said  in  the  minds  of  his  readers.  On  the 
other  hand  they  are  not  appealed  to  nor  enforced  nor  definitely  explained 
even  at  places  in  the  argument  where  it  might  have  seemed  natural. 
"Baptisms"  (that  is,  evidently  from  the  context.  Christian  Baptism  as 
compared  with  other  ceremonial  washings  with  which  as  Jews  they 
would  have  been  familiar)  are  named  in  passing,  in  vi.  2,  among  the 
rudiments  of  a  Catechumen's  instiniction.  In  x.  22,  23  the  juxtaposition 
of  the  figure,  "our  bodies  washed  with  pure  water,"  and  the  exhortation  to 
"hold  fast  the  confession"  (cp.  1  Pet.  iii.  21),  and  the  whole  context  which 
makes  this  an  introduction  to  the  enforcement  of  the  obligations  of  a 
Christian  to  the  Christian  society,  make  it  hard  to  doubt  that  the  writer 
had  in  mind,  and  that  his  readers  would  have  in  mind.  Holy  Baptism.  But 
yet  the  "sprinkling"  and  "washing"  in  this  passage  belonged  in  the  first 
place  not  to  a  Christian  Sacrament,  but  to  the  consecration  of  a  High  Priest 
under  the  Jewish  Law.  They  have,  in  the  Epistle,  a  spiritual  explanation 
and  there  is  no  need  for  the  introduction,  at  the  moment,  of  a  further 
symbolic  interpretation.  Directly  we  try  to  put  such  a  definite  symbolical 
interpretation  on  the  words  we  are  in  difficulties.  What  is  meant  by  the 
"sprinkling  of  blood"  that  is  not  meant  by  the  "washing  with  pure  water"? 
Yet  is  one  to  be  interpreted  of  Baptism  and  the  other  left  without  the 
secondaiy  interpretation?  Some  have  tried,  with  even  less  support  and 
probability,  to  take  the  two  parts  of  the  figure  severally  of  the  two 
Sacraments. 

Similarly  there  are  phrases  which,  when  put  together,  leave  little  doubt 
in  our  minds  that  the  Sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper  was  to  writer  and 
readers  a  familiar  part  of  Christian  practice.  There  is  some  reason  to  think 
(as  has  been  said  in  App.  i.)  that  the  words  of  Institution  were  in  the 
writer's  mind  in  x.  3  and  ix.  20.  The  "assembling  of  themselves  together," 
which  some  are  charged  (x.  25)  with  "forsaking,"  though  the  purpose  men- 
tioned at  the  moment  is  the  general  one  of  strengthening  their  corporate 


138  HEBREWS 

feeling,  of  "exhorting  one  another,"  was  yet  connected,  too  closely  for  the 
fact  to  be  altogether  forgotten,  through  the  "breaking  of  bread"  with  the 
whole  cycle  of  ideas — the  Atonement,  the  "oflFering  of  the  Body,"  the 
"drawing  near" — with  which  the  writer  is  dealing.  In  the  same  way 
the  language  used  in  xiii.  10,  the  "Altar  of  which  they  have  no  right  to 
eat  who  serve  the  Tabernacle,"  followed  as  it  is  by  the  sacrificial  figures  of 
verses  15  and  16,  must  indicate  that  somewhere  in  the  writer's  mind  were 
the  thoughts  of  the  Christian  Feast  upon  a  Sacrifice,  of  the  Christian 
Eucharist  with  its  thanksgiving  and  its  call  to  give ;  but  yet  these  are 
in  the  background,  not  the  direct  object  on  which  his  eyes  are  set. 

The  reason  why  he  stops  just  where  he  does  is  obvious.  His  purpose 
was  to  shew  to  Jewish  Christians  how  everything  in  the  old  Law  was  meant 
to  lead  to  and  end  in  Christ — to  lift  his  readers  from  type  to  antitype — to 
shew  them  the  personal  and  spiritual  meaning  of  that  sacrificial  system  to 
which  they  looked  back.  It  was  a  system  of  "shadows,"  and  the  "body  was 
of  Christ" 

This  was  the  lesson  for  the  moment.  It  would  have  hindered,  not 
helped,  his  pui-pose  if  he  had  said  anything  which  could  be  taken  by 
men  of  the  mental  attitude  of  his  first  readers  to  mean  "as  Christians 
we  also  have  a  system  of  typical  ordinances,  retrospective  as  those  of  the 
Old  Covenant  were  prospective."  If  he  had  meant  to  say  anything  of  the 
kind,  if  he  had  meant  to  explain  at  all  the  relation  of  the  Christian  Sacraments 
to  Jewish  types,  he  would  assuredly  have  said  what  he  wished  to  say  more 
fully  and  definitely  and  with  more  provision  against  misconception.  This  is 
not  to  say  that  there  is  not  in  this  Epistle,  as  there  is  in  all  Holy  Scripture, 
a  sense  of  a  purpose  somewhere,  larger  than  the  intention  at  the  moment  of 
the  writer,  nor  that  it  is  not  legitimate  for  us  to  draw  conclusions  from  the 
writer's  arguments  which  yet  would  have  been  beyond  his  immediate 
purpose. 


APPENDIX   III. 

USE  OF  THE  EPISTLE  IN  THE  PRAYER-BOOK. 

The  present  and  practical  value  of  the  Epistle  cannot  be  better  illustrated 
than  by  the  use  made  of  it  in  our  Liturgy. 

I.    On  its  doctrinal  side,  as  the  witness  to  the  full  significance 

(1)  of  the  Incarnation — we  read  ch.  i.  1-12  as  the  Epistle  for  Christmas 
Day,  to  match  the  Gospel  from  John  i.  1-14  ; 

(2)  of  the  Atonement — we  read  the  whole  passage  from  ch.  ix.  11  to  x.  23, 
dividing  it  between  the  Epistles  for  Passion  Sunday,  Wednesday  before 
Easter  and  Good  Friday; 

(3)  of  the  Ascension — we  read  ch.  iv.  as  the  Evening  Lesson  for  Ascensioa 
Day. 


APPENDIX  139 

We  may  add 

(1)  The  influence  of  the  Epistle  which  is  to  be  felt  in  the  wording  of  the 
Nicene  Creed,  "Light  of  Light,  Very  God  of  very  God";  cp.  "theeff"ulgence 
of  his  glory,  and  the  very  image  of  his  substance." 

(2)  The  large  part  which  the  teaching  of  the  Epistle  occupies  in  the 
Communion  Service— especially  in  the  Prayer  of  Consecration :  "the  oblation 
of  Himself  once  offered,"  the  "full,  perfect,  and  sufficient  sacrifice";  cp.  ch.  1. 
3  ix.  10,  12,  14,  25,  26.  We  owe  to  the  same  source  some  of  the  most 
famiUar  phrases 'of  the  Service,  such  as  "Draw  near,"  a  great  word  in  the 
Epistle  (iv.  16,  vii.  25,  x.  1,  22),  and  "sacrifice  of  praise"  (ch.  xiii.  15). 

IL    On  its  jorac/ica/ side. 

Its  tone  of  tenderness  and  sympathy  which  has  given  it  the  name  of  "the 
Epistle  for  sufferers,"  is  illustrated  in  the  use  made  of  ch.  xii.  6-9  in  the 
Exhortation  in  the  Visitation  of  the  Sick,  in  the  selection  of  the  little  morsel 
of  Scripture  as  the  Epistle  in  the  Communion  of  the  Sick  {ibid.  5,  6)  and  of 
the  Lesson— the  peaceful  note  at  the  close  of  a  stern  day— for  the  evening 
of  Ash  Wednesday  {ibid.  3-17). 

The  animating  catalogue  of  the  heroes  of  faith  (ch.  xi.  33-xii.  7)  is 
naturally  a  Lesson  for  All  Saints'  Day. 

Two  of  the  offertory  sentences  are  taken  from  the  Epistle  (ch.  vi.  10,  "God 
is  not  unrighteous,  &c."  and  xiii.  16,  "To  do  good  and  to  distribute,  &c."). 
We  owe  probably  to  the  use  made  of  Psalm  xcv.  in  ch.  iii.  7-iv.  11  the  place 
which  that  Psalm  holds  in  the  Morning  Service  as  the  reminder,  when  we 
begin  the  service  of  praise,  of  the  double  aspect  of  all  Revelation  and 
Religion ;  as  the  voice  at  once  of  invitation—"'  0  come,  let  us  sing"— and  of 
«rar raws'— "To-day,  ^^y®  ^^  hear." 


INDEX  A. 

QUOTATIONS  FROM  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  OR  DIRECT 
REFERENCES  TO  IT  IN  THE  TEXT  OF  THE  EPISTLE. 


Genesis 
ii.  2 

V.  22-24 
xiv.  18-20 
xxi.  12 
xxii.  16 
xlvii.  31 
1.  24,  25 
Exodns 
ii.  2 
xxiv.  8 
XXV.  40 
Leviticus 

vi.  30 
Numbers 

xii.  7 

xiv.  29 

xix.  2,  17,  18 
Deuteronomy 

iv.  11 

iv.  24 

ix.  19 

xvii.  2-6 

xxix.  18 

ixxi.  6 

xxxii.  35,  36 

xxxii.  43  (LXX) 

1  Sam. 
xii.  6 

2  Sam. 
vii.  12  f. 


Heb. 
iv.  4 
xi.  5 
vii.  1-3 
xi.  18 
vi.  13,  14 
xi.  21 
xi.  22 

xi.  23 

ix.  19,  20 
viii.  5 

xiii.  11 


iii. 

2,5 

iii. 

17,  18 

ix. 

13 

xii 

.18 

xii 

.29 

xii 

.21 

X. 

28 

xii 

.  15 

xiii.  5 

X. 

30,  31 

i. 

6 

iii.  2 
i.  5 


Psalms 

Heb. 

ii.  7 

i.  5,  V.  5 

viii.  4f. 

ii.  6-8 

xxii.  22 

ii.  12 

xl.  6  f . 

X.  5-7 

xiv.  6,  7 

i.  8,  9 

Ixxxix.  27 

i.  6 

xcv.  8  f . 

iii.  7  f. 

cii.  25  f . 

i.  10-12 

civ.  4 

i.  7 

ex.  1 

i.  3,   13,  viii.  1, 
12,  xii.  2 

1  X. 

ox.  4 

V.  6,  10,  vi.  20, 
17,21 

vii. 

cxviii.  6 

xiii.  6 

Proverbs 

iii.  11,  12 

xii.  5,  6 

iv.  26,  27 

xii.  13 

Isaiah 

viii.  17,  18 

ii.  13 

xxvi.  20 

X.  37 

XXXV.  3 

xii.  12 

Ixiii.  17 

xiii.  20 

Jeremiah 

xxxi.  31  f. 

viii.  8-12,  X.  16, 

17 

Habakkuk 

ii.  3,  4 

X.  37,  38 

Haggai 

ii.  6 

xii.  26 

Zechariah 

ix.  11 

xiii.  20 

Apollos  xiv 
Aquila  xiv 
Arminians  42 

Barnabas   xii 

Calvinists   42 
Clement  of  Alexandria  xii, 
Clement  of  Rome  xi,  xiii, 
xixn.,  97,  114,  125 

Dante  37 
Domitian   xix  n. 
Driver   48,  73 
Du  Bose  35 

Harnack  xx,  128 
Hicks  xiv 
Homer   123 
Hort   29,  103 

Ignatian  Epistles  xx 

Josephus  5,  64,  74 

Lewis  XV 

Lightfoot  66,  72,  130 
Lucretius   17 
Luke  xii,  xiii,  xiv 
Luther  xiv,  65 


INDEX  B. 

NAMES. 

Middleton   65 
Milton  9 

Novatians  42 

Origen   xLi,  xiii,  36,  91 

25,  36,  95      Paul   xiif.,  12,  58,  89,  91,  97,  100 
xiv,  xviii,       Philip   xiv 

Philo   4,  47,  64,  123,  124 

Priscilla  xiv 

Eamsay  xv,  72 
Eendall   22,  38,  73,  111 

Salem  48 
Silas  xiv 
Swete  69,  71,  88 

TertuUian   xii 
Timothy  xx,  133 

Vaughan  14,  32,  36,  44,  90,  96,  104, 
110,  116,  126,  132 

Westcott  10,  18,  28,  29,  35,  40,  49, 
50,  53,  57,  65,  67,  73,  84,  90,  101, 
103,  111,  115,  118,  119,  121,  124, 
128,  132 


INDEX  C. 


"Accidia"   37 

Angels   XX,  4,  5,  10,  11 

Atonement  (great  day  of)  xxii,  32,  33, 

56,  61,  64,  68,  83,  127 
Authorship  of  Epistle  xif.,  12,  89,  91 

Catechumens  (creed  of)   39 
Christianity  (evidences  of)    12 
Consecration  of  High  Priest   83,  85 

Date  of  Epistle  xi,  xviii,  xix,  xx 
Destination  of  Epistle  xvif. 

Fear  of  death   17 

Gethsemane   34 

"  Harrowing  of  Hell "    107 
Heavens  (plur.)   31 
Hebrews  and  Hellenists  xv 

Incarnation  (reasons  for)    19 

Jeremiah  60 

Judaizers  xvii,  xx,  66,  126,  127 

Marriage  (disparagement  of)   124 


Messiah  (a  suffering)   15,  19,  71 
Messianic  prophecy  9 

Plural  (Epistolary)   130 
Proverb  (a  Greek)   36 
Psalter  (use  of)   10 

Quotation,  Freedom  in   81 

Indefinite  form  of   14,  24,  27 

from  LXX  where  it  differs  from 

Hebrew    xv,   13,   79,   90,   96,    113, 
120,  131 

Eetrospective    effect    of     the     Great 

Sacrifice   70,  75 
Revised  Version,  clauses  due  to  change 

of   reading   4,   22,    27,   43,   77,   89, 

112,   130 

Tabernacle  (not  Temple)    xviii,  63 

Contents  of   62  f. 

Tenses  (Greek) 

Present   9,  42,  53,  65,  81,  87 

Aorist   42,  58,  89,  111 

Perfect   49,  58,  81,  95,  100,  109 

Pluperfect   111 


INDEX 


143 


II.     WORDS   AND    PHRASES   DISCUSSED   IN   THE   NOTES. 


age  to  come   43 

altar  (we  have  an)    127 

anchor  (of  the  soul)   46 

Apostle   20 

ark  of  the  Covenant   63,  64 

baptisms  40 

became  (  =  beseemed)   15,  54 
being,  becoming   3,  4 
blood  of  sprinkhng  119 
brethren  84 

censer  (or,  altar  of  incense)    64 
cherubim  of  glory   64 
confession   85 
conscience  (evil)   85 
conscience  (good)   130 
consider   20,  85,  110 
continually  48,  77 

dead  works  39,  70 
dedicate   84 
despite   87 
devil   17 
draw  near  32 
draw  nigh   52 

effulgence   3 
enlightened   41,  89 
eternal  spirit   69 
exhortation   111 

faith,  hope,  love   44,  86 

fathers  (the,  or,  our)    2 

Firstborn   6 

firstborn  (church  of  the)   118 

forerunner   46 

fruit  of  lips   129 

general  assembly   118 
godly  fear  35,  97,  121 
great  High  Priest   31 

heart   84 

heavens   31 

heir  of  all  things   3 

inherit   4,  9,  44 

jealousy  of  fire   87 


living  God   24,  29,  70,  88 
living  way   89 

mediator   52 
mercy-seat   64 

new   60 

oil  of  gladness   8 
oracles  of  God   38 

partakers  of  (or,  with)  Christ  24 
perfect,  perfection  15,  39,  50,  56,  66, 

107,  119,  132 
place  of  repentance   114 
profane   114 
propitiation    18 

remembrance  of  sins   78,  80 
reproach  of  Christ    103 
righteousness  according  to  faith   97 
roll  of  the  book  79 

sabbath  rest   28 
sacrifice  of  praise   129 
salvation   9,  11,  16,  36,  43.  76 
sanctify   16,  69,  81,  128 
sanctuary   57,  62,  65 
seem   26 

shadow  (of  good  things)   77 
sin  (without)    32 

(apart  from)    76 

sinners  against  themselves    110 
BO  to  say   49 
spirit  of  grace   88 
substance   4 
surety   52 

testament   71 
the  day   86 
these  days  3 

very  image   3 

warned  (of  God)   58 
weakness  of  the  Law   51 
winds  (or,  spirits)   8 
word  of  righteousness   38 
worlds   3,  95 


INDEX  D. 


GREEK  WORDS  AND  PHRASES  IN  THE  NOTES. 


dira&yacriJLa    3 
dweideia,  aTriffTia    28 
dirocrTiXKeiv,  diroffToKos   20 
dpxvy^^    16 

yevS/xeva  (yivd/ieva)    67 
yLyvecdai,   elyai    3 

S^iTfiioi   89 

Sid   67 

Sia6r]K7],  dLarldefJiai   72 

SoKifxaffia    23 

SiJj'arat,   Si/i-ovTat    77 

idvirep    24 

iyyi^eiv   52 

ei/cu))'    3 

eZs,  eZ    112 

iKKXtjala    118 

iKTpairy    113 

(fiaOev  d<t>   wi'  ^TraOev   36 

<2v   67 

ivSeiKvvffdai   44 

^f  elprjvri    48 

evxapicTTia    129 

f^Xos    87 

iXao-Ti^ptoj'  (£7r/^e/ita)    64 


KaX6s    130 

/card    97 

KOfffxiKhv  dyiov    62,  63 

Xarpefa,  Xarpei^etJ'    66,  70 
Xeirou/ryi/ca  Trvei^/iara    10 

\€LTOVpiyol     10 

fjiereT^dri   96 

octos,  a7toj   54 

iracTjYuptj    118 

irapaKorj    11 

TToXi'/iepuJs  (cai  7roXur/)6?rwj  2 

TTpoaipx^^GO'''    32 

irpO(j(pipeip  35 

irpti)T0T6Kia    118 

2(u)c  opet   116 
triry/caKOTra^ei'j'    124 

Ttvd,   Wi'a    38 
rpaxv^l'^eiv  29 

vironovl],  vtro/Jiiveiv    109 
inrbaracm   4 

4>i\aSe\<l>La    123 
^(Xolep/a   123 

XapaKT-^p   3 


CAMBRIDGE  :    PRINTED  BY  JOHN  CLAY,  M.A.  AT  THE  UNIVERSITY  PRESS. 


DATE  DUE 


.:|W^^4a«1^ 


^nHtiryrff- 


PRINTED  IN  U.S.A. 


